Headstrong
by AvalonBay
Summary: -Sequel to Ready When You Are-. -First in Bailey series-. Bailey followed her sister from Australia to Angel Grove. Now in Mariner Bay, Bailey hopes to reconnect with her father and make a name for herself. But she didn't know she'd get pulled into the world of ranger duties and face the demon that murdered Billy's mother; Diabolico. Carter/Dana, Ryan/Kelsey, Joel/Angela.
1. Prologue

**Bailey Series**

Headstrong•When All Is Said and Done **•** New Beginning•Get Up•Still Frame

* * *

 **Headstrong**

 **Full Summary** **-** [Sequel to Avalon Series]. Bailey Mitchell followed her sister from their home in Australia to Angel Grove when all they had to rely on was each other. While there she made some of the best friends she's ever known and was a soldier within Zordon's army in his war against Rita Repulsa, The Machine Empire, and Divatox. She gained lots of new experiences while being a ranger and a technical advisor, and yet throughout the adventures she felt there was some more she could do. Now she's ready to step out of her sister's shadow and make a name for herself. Bailey should've known it wouldn't be long until she was pulled back into the world of ranger duties when coming face to face with the destiny she struggled to fulfill. Now with a team of new rangers on her side she comes to terms with the old saying her team leader had coined long ago; once a ranger, always a ranger.

Bailey Mitchell followed her sister from their home in Australia to Angel Grove. Now in Mariner Bay, Bailey hopes to reconnect with her father and make a name for herself. She should've known she would get pulled into the world of ranger duties when faced with the spirit that killed her friend's mother; Diabolico. Once a ranger, always a ranger. _Carter/Dana, Ryan/Kelsi, Joel/Angela_

* * *

 **Prologue**

* * *

 _"And you're sure this is all that can be done to combat it?"_

 _Captain Mitchell turned towards his assistant, Angela Fairweather, who appeared as worried as he did. If what this young man was telling him was true, then it certainly_ _was_ _true and the steps to keep things safe had to be made. But this was Mariner Bay, it had been safe for as long as he could remember. Going off of a hunch, off of a prophecy…?_

 _That was blasphemy._

 _They had been prepared for this day in many ways but with this, to have this power? And to have it_ _created,_ _for it to finally have worked._

 _"I'm sure," Billy Cranston replied. "With everything I've been through over the past couple of years, not to mention my studies, technological advance, research…" He shook his head. "There's nothing else that can be done. They're going to be released and it's going to be soon."_

 _Captain Mitchell reached out and placed his hand on Billy's shoulder. "Thank you," he said. "If it wasn't for all of your hard work these past couple of weeks, I'm not sure this would've been possible. Mariner Bay has you to thank."_

 _Billy shook his head. "Don't thank me. With these guys…" He took a deep breath. "There's a lot I'd do to see them put back where they come from once their inevitable release comes to fruition." He licked his lips. "And it will."_

 _In the desert, covered figures walked their camels through the sand up to the ruins they had spotted in the distance. They weren't sure if it was a mirage or real, but they needed to find out. Their camels were getting restless and they needed to find a space to stop. As they approached the ruins, the sand began to pull away from their feet until they fell through the Earth and landed hard on the ground below._

 _Coughing, the travelers got to their feet and took in their surroundings. It looked like a tomb. A tomb for the ancient snake if the statues adorning the walls were any indication. Around their feet were gold coins they greedily took and shoved into their pockets. One of the travelers walked over to a tomb that sat in the middle of the room with more gold coins sitting atop it._

 _In the flickering light of the torches his companions carried, he studied the cover of the tomb. There was writing on it, in a language he had never seen before. But if there were gold coins outside…_

 _The traveler pushed open the top of the tomb and gasped before screaming in horror, his voice blending in with his companion's as apparitions raced out, letting out ghostly wails, moans, and screeches as they went._

 _They swirled around the travelers before racing up into the air, disappearing from sight._

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 **A/N:** And that's the first chapter! I'm so excited about this. I hope you guys are as well. It's just a prologue so far but more is coming soon. Please enjoy the first chapter of the Bailey series and remember to review.

 **~Av**


	2. Arriving in Mariner Bay

**.:01:.**

 _Arriving in Mariner Bay_

* * *

"Are we here? Is this it?"

Bailey Oliver-Mitchell leaned over her big sister Avalon, who leaned out of the way, to look out the airplane window. Pulling her brown hair behind her ears, she pressed her nose against the glass. Bailey ignored the streaks that were already left on it, more likely from little kids that had been there before, and looked over Mariner Bay. It was very similar in look to Angel Grove, though Angel Grove was had a more welcoming vibe. Mariner Bay sounded exactly as she imagined and was confirmed to her after looking through photos of the place online; militia.

Still, Bailey felt excited. If she thought she'd be back in California so soon after leaving, she wouldn't have believed it but…

This was different.

She and Avalon had left California to go back to Australia shortly after Avalon's graduation from Angel Grove High. It was time for them to go. Avalon was done being a ranger and the Bailey was still working through being a regular teenager again. They hadn't seen their mother in a long time—despite the fact she had lost her parental rights to them—and knew the time was right to be back for more than a few weeks at a time. This time they had been there for two years, living a great life with their old friends from before moving to Angel Grove. Avalon started college classes and Bailey was progressing through her schoolwork with ease and had made a few girlfriends as well as keeping in touch with Rocky's bother and sister back in Angel Grove.

And then they got that phone call.

Their father, Captain Mitchell, wanted them to go to Mariner Bay so they could work on their relationship. Bailey had watched Avalon's face when they got that phone call, listening to him on speaker. It didn't sound like him; it didn't sound like the man that they had known to mess up their lives so much. Not the man that was more serious and stern than anyone they had ever met. He sounded, well, human.

Remorseful and sincere.

And yet, Bailey didn't entirely believe it.

Watching Avalon's face she could see that she didn't believe it either; her eyes were narrowed and she continued to make humming sounds as the seconds passed, listening to what he had to say. Then when the phone call ended she shook her head and muttered a curse under her breath. That made Bailey smile, gave her a sense of relief to know they were still on the same page.

But as the days passed and turned into weeks, they talked about it more with their mother, Ellie, to see what to do. On one hand Bailey was greatly curious to know what he had to say. The last time they spoke was when they visited Australia during a school trip with Avalon's class at Angel Grove High where they admitted to their father they forgave him for what he had done, but would never forget it. But on the other hand, there was a big part of her that knew the things that had happened in her life (good and bad, though she couldn't help but notice the bad) wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for him.

Ultimately, finally, Bailey decided that she wanted to go to see what he had to say. It took a little bit longer to convince Avalon that it was a good idea. Next thing she knew, the two were on a plane headed back to California and Bailey was nervous. Not just because she would be going back to see her father but because the States had become a second home to her. Bailey knew Avalon was at least a little bit happy about it because that meant she could see Jason a little bit more than originally planned.

Now their plane was landing and Bailey was as excited as she was nervous. Avalon, on the other hand, hadn't dropped the moderately annoyed expression on her face of which seemed to deepen as the seconds passed. Bailey leaned back in her seat and grabbed her older sister's hand. "It's going to be okay, Av."

"If you say so," Avalon replied. Her face softened and she sat up straight, waiting as the plane hit the ground and slowly taxied its way up to the tunnel. "But he minute he says something stupid I'm out of there."

Bailey smiled teasingly. "if you ever actually went through with that threat, we wouldn't have any of the friends we have, Av."

"Good point."

" _And_ we wouldn't have becomes rangers."

"I get it, Bay!"

Bailey smiled and gathered her things together, resting them in her lap. Her stomach erupted with butterflies now. They were finally in Mariner Bay and were probably only a few minutes away from seeing their dad again. What was he like? Was he any different form the last time they saw him? Were they finally able to be a family again? Or at least some semblance of a family? And would the Olivers be upset?

Mr. and Mrs. Oliver had adopted Avalon and Bailey after everything in their past had come to haunt them. It happening was the best thing they had ever experienced, and they were still thankful for it. But it couldn't have been a great feeling to know they were skipping a time to visit them in Angel Grove to go see their birth father. And it also probably didn't help that Tommy was all the way in MIT, starting his first year of college after having had taken a year off to work with his uncle on a racing career.

Even Bailey was surprised when Tommy said he was going to be going to MIT. Not that she didn't think he could do it, but seeing him go from the guy that could barely remember when and where a class was at school to going to MIT was a shock.

"Hey, we can go now," Avalon said. She nudged Bailey on the arm and the girls got up form their seats and squeezed their way out to the aisle. Then after waiting a few minutes for the aisle to clear they left the plane and headed to baggage claim to gather their things.

Once arriving there they found their bags at the feet of two men dressed in black, complete with sunglasses, gloves, and earpieces that curled from their ears. Their heads shifted on a slow swivel before landing on the two girls. The man on the left, with the balding top and long ponytail, lifted a finger to his ear and said something while the other beckoned for Avalon and Bailey to come closer.

Bailey's eyes widened and she turned to Avalon. "What'd you do?"

Avalon glared back at her. "Nothing that would entail the secret service to come after us," She said. Then she thought for a moment. "Not in Mariner Bay, anyway, we just got here. I couldn't have done anything aggro within the five seconds we got off the plane, yeah?"

"I don't know, did you steal any peanuts?"

"The peanuts are free, boofhead! And why do you think I'm the one that did it? You can hack into literally anything, how do I know they aren't coming after you?"

Bailey grimaced. _Good point_ , she thought. There were plenty things she did while as a ranger that she probably could've gotten in trouble for. Not to mention the things she and Fred had managed to do 'just for fun' and 'to see if they could do it'. They found some of the strangest things online than they ever thought possible from the hacking work they managed to do. Then again she had a better sense of technology than most people due to the foreign materials and objects used while working with Zordon and Alpha.

Chances were there were some people out there watching them closer than they'd like.

"Well, let's see what they want," Bailey said. She took in a deep breath and started over. "Maybe dad just wants to make sure we get to his place."

"Maybe," Avalon mumbled.

The two walked over to the men in black and Bailey started to introduce herself, only stopping when her carry-on bag was immediately pulled from her hands. Avalon took a step back as hers was taken too and Bailey noticed her clench her hand into a fist, her fight instinct immediately coming to play.

It was then that a familiar blonde woman walked over, dressed to the nines in what resembled a military uniform. Looking closer, Bailey spotted the paramedic's patch on her left shoulder. Bailey's eyes immediately lit up. "Dana!" She greeted. "How ya going?"

Dana gave a small smile in response. She clasped her hands together behind her and nodded towards the men, who whisked their bags away. Then she turned back to Avalon and Bailey, her half-sisters. "It's good to see you got into Mariner Bay with no problems. I trust the flight was acceptable."

Bailey's eyebrows came together. She was speaking a little weirdly, almost like their father. He spoke in a completely militant voice in all areas of his life, taking his government job very seriously. It had been something that actually had a hand in pushing Avalon and Bailey away from him; that he didn't know how to separate his job from his home life, making it hard for them to connect with him.

Dana had been different. From how much they knew of her and spoken to her over the years there was a point where she was angry at Captain Mitchell as well, with him having kept it a secret from her that she had two half-siblings she hadn't know about. That all seemed to be water under the bridge now.

"Yeah, the flight was fine," Avalon said. She grinned, crossing her arms. "It's not every day you get to fly business class."

"Father wanted to make sure it was enjoyable," Dana said. "It's a long flight from Australia to the United States. I hope it wasn't long enough that you're not up to seeing Father at the base. That's where we're instructed to take you."

Bailey's head jerked back in surprise. She hadn't ever remembered Dana referring to him as 'father' either. Mostly they all called him 'dad'. But enough time had passed without much communication between them all that she couldn't completely blame her for it.

"Are you ready to go?"

Avalon pressed her lips together and nodded. She looped her arm through Bailey's and the two followed Dana and the two men in black to the limo that was waiting for them. They got into the back and the limo immediately started up, driving into the city at top speed.

As they went along, colorful beams of light swooped and swirled through the city, knocking citizens over as they blew by. Dana sat up straight in her seat, her blue eyes widening when she got a good glimpse of them as they blew by the car. The force of the back draft made the limo swerve back and forth for a few seconds before the men managed to correct themselves. Dana leaned forward and tapped her finger against the glass partition; it immediately slid open seconds later.

"We have to get back to my father immediately," she said. "I don't care what you do to get us there. Just do it now!"

Bailey felt her shoulders push back in her leather seat as the limo suddenly increased in speed. Avalon reached out, grasping the door handle when the limo sharply rounded a corner. "What's going on?" she demanded.

But Dana stayed silent. Her eyes shifted back and forth across the cityscape as they continued to drive. Then, finally, they drove down a ramp that appeared to go into ocean, before driving into an underwater tunnel. The limo parked and Dana led the way out of the car, taking long strides as she passed through corridors and rooms where other people were standing at touch-screen computers and control panels.

Bailey's mouth filled with drool. There were so many technological advancements there that she could hardly even begin to imagine existed. _Sheesh, if the government helped us out with stuff before, maybe we would've had had to wing it all the time,_ she thought, looking around. _Then again, it took a bit of convincing for NASADA to believe us, let alone to know that the government could help._ Bailey rolled her eyes. _They were more worried about setting evacuation plans in place._

Bailey nearly jumped, grabbing Avalon's arm as a voice suddenly rang out around them. _"Civilian crew and authorized personnel have entered Lightspeed Aqua Base. Security clearance is checked and confirmed."_

"Well, it's good to know we're not going to be arrested," Bailey said.

Avalon raised an eyebrow then smirked. "They said they did a security check, sis, not a background check. We may still be in trouble." The girls laughed to themselves and Dana glanced over her shoulder at them, the stern expression still on her face.

And yet, she still walked with long strides to a conference room where multiple men and women were sitting around a table. One man sat at the head of the table and was speaking as they entered. "—They should be sufficient but I'd like them double checked."

Dana walked up to the table and clasped her hands behind her back. Avalon and Bailey moved to stand beside her and Bailey's breath caught in her throat as Captain William Mitchell—her father—lifted his gaze to regard the three. If he was surprised or excited to see them he didn't show it, the stern expression Dana held was an exact replica of the one Captain Mitchell held.

His mustache twitched as he waited for Dana to explain her presence."

"I'm sorry for the interruption, Captain," Dana said quickly. Her eyes shifted to the other personnel around the room. "Something's come up."

A low sigh escaped Captain Mitchell. "I hope it's of the utmost importance."

"Believe me, Captain; I wouldn't have come if it wasn't." Dana softly cleared her throat. "This is the highest of importance in terms of what I have to tell you." There must've been something in her voice that caught Captain Mitchell's attention for he nodded, pushing back in his seat.

"We'll finish this later," he remarked to his colleagues. They nodded and got up form their seats, leaving the room quickly. Bailey took a quick look at them, noticing they were in military styled clothing as well. Then she turned back to her father and watched him carefully, suddenly feeling like she was about to meet a complete stranger.

 _He may as well be,_ she reminded herself.

Once the room was clear, Dana walked over to their father, her stern expression fading into one of concern. "Father, they've escaped."

"You're sure?" Captain Mitchell demanded.

"Positive, we saw them on the way in."

"So those energy fields we saw are important, yeah?" Avalon asked.

Captain Mitchell shot a glance her way. "Yes, more important than we could ever imagine. Something that we didn't expect to happen as 5000 years have passed since they were sealed away."

"Since who were sealed away?" Bailey asked.

Captain Mitchell took in a deep breath and turned to his younger daughters. "5000 years ago this part of the Earth was inhabited by evil spirits. Demons, if you will, who only wanted to conquer and destroy. Luckily there was a warlock who captured them in a tomb, but we always feared that one day they would escape and would return to Mariner Bay. Unfortunately, as of hours ago, our fears have come true and the demons have been released back in our world."

Avalon snorted. "We've seen a lot of weird things over the past couple of years but demons and spirits?"

Dana took a step forward. "There's nothing to scoff about, this is a very serious issue."

"Very serious indeed," Captain Mitchell agreed. "Especially as I believe you've already had a run-in with one of these demonic spirits?"

Bailey tilted her head to the side. "We have?"

"Yes. He goes by a name you heard of, and you've have extensive experience with him as well." Captain Mitchell took the chance to look each of them in the eye. "His name is Diabolico."

Bailey felt as if the ground dropped from beneath her. At the same time, she and Avalon looked at each other and Bailey could tell the expression that mixed fury, surprise, and fear that was on her big sister's face was on hers as well.

If there was anything they didn't expect it was for a monster they defeated to come back to life.

What they also didn't expect was to come into contact with the monster that had murdered their friend's mother.

What were the chances they'd leave their ranger past behind just for it to show up again when they least expected it?

* * *

 **A/N:** Carter, Chad, Kelsey, and Joel appear in the next chapter. So what do you think so far? I know it's starting off kind of angsty, but I think you'd be mad too if you were going to see your father again all for him to bring you back into ranger stuff because of your experience with it.

Then again, Captain Mitchell isn't really known for being very open with his emotions at first so it's not too surprising. Please let me know and I'll have New Beginning updated again on Sunday.

 **~Av**


	3. Past Memories

**.:02:.**

 _Past Memories_

* * *

"And these are your quarters," Dana said. She stepped up to a door that slid open then stepped aside so that Avalon and Bailey could go inside. Bailey twisted her mouth to the side as she glanced around the beige colored room.

It resembled a pod, a beige pod. The room wasn't that big; their beds were directly to the left and right sides of the door, a small sitting area extended from the back of the bedroom, and then a door after that was the opening o the bathroom. Actually, it sort of reminded her of the apartment she and Avalon used to stay in at Angel Grove before moving in with the Cranstons. Very small and cramped, but they could make work of it.

As it was, if they were going to be there for a while, they'd have to make it feel like home. As Bailey stepped into the room to take the bed on the right she winced, bringing her fingers up to her ears as a splitting ache shot through them. "I didn't realize that we would be living underwater," she commented.

"It'll take some time to get used to the combined pressure of being this far under water," Dana explained. "But this is something that the Aqua Base will do for you as time goes on; it adjusts the pressure around us to equalize things as much as possible."

"Very fancy," Avalon noted. She sat down on her bed, dropping her hands to her lap. She let out along sigh and ran her hand through her hair. Bailey glanced at her then looked away, knowing exactly what she was thinking about.

"I'll leave you two to get situated," Dana said. She continued to speak in that cool, serious tone that was starting to freak Bailey out a little bit. "Father wants us back in his office in an hour to continue getting situated with what is going to be done about Diabolico."

Bailey winced as the name was mentioned again. Still, she nodded and smiled her thanks towards her half-sister. Once the door closed behind Dana, Bailey sat down on her bed and placed her face in her hands. She let out a sigh that mimicked the one Avalon had just expelled.

"Not what you expected, huh?" Avalon asked quietly.

Bailey shook her head. Not that she was even sure what to expected, but she was glad that Avalon wasn't rubbing it in her face and saying 'I told you so'. Bailey had been the one that had done as much as she could to try and convince Avalon that it'd be good to see their Dad again, but so far it wasn't anything she thought it would be. Not that she expected rainbows and butterflies to soar around and everything would be happy and exciting from the get go.

But she expected more than having a traumatic moment from her past come back to haunt her the second they stepped on the Aqua Base. It just reminded her of the last few times she had seen her father. The last time was when he had admitted that Dana hadn't known who they were. And that had been a major slap in the face.

 _"Dana doesn't know about you two," Captain Mitchell finally explained._

 _Avalon snorted, turning away from her father._

 _Bailey sank low in her seat, face falling into a pout. Tears immediately came to her eyes as the weight of his words crashed into her. The half-sister that they had known about for a while didn't even know they existed._

 _"But not because I was ashamed of you two," Captain Mitchell continued quickly._

 _Avalon snorted again._

 _"But to hide her from what I've done as well as for what happened to her brother… your brother, Ryan." He cleared his throat. "Ryan isn't with me anymore." He had the orange and purple ranger's attention at those words. "One night…not long after their mother died….we were in a bad car accident. It was a rainy night, I lost control of the car and we went over a cliff. We were ejected from the car as it went down the cliff. I managed to grab onto a branch that was protruding from the cliffside and had Dana in my other arm. Ryan was hanging onto my foot." Captain Mitchell took a deep breath. "He started to slip and…I couldn't do anything other than to cry out for help, hoping that someone would hear me and help us._

 _"Then, all of a sudden, there was a demon that appeared before us. His name is Diabolico. He said that he would save Ryan, but only if I gave him to the demon in return. I refused at first. That was my son, my eldest child; I was going to save him. But then…" Captain Mitchell took a deep breath, his voice catching in his throat. "But then my shoe slipped off…and Ryan started to fall…I had no choice but to allow Diabolico to do what he wanted…I've never seen him again. Dana was young enough that she didn't remember Ryan and…I couldn't let her remember. After we were saved, I got rid of every existence of Ryan, it was…just too hard." He brought up a hand and wiped at his eyes._

 _"What does that have to do with what you decided to do with us?" Bailey whispered._

 _"I never told Dana this either. Her mother continued to defy the odds. She had cancer, beat it and had Ryan, and years later found out that she had cancer again. This time she wasn't going to survive it and…one night while Ryan and Dana were very young I got drunk and ran into your mother. One thing led to another and I fell in love with her. She got pregnant with you, Avalon. It didn't take long until I confessed to my wife that I had cheated on her and while she was upset, she understood, in a way. She was angry, but she understood. She didn't want me to grieve for too long, she accepted it. She was always able to do that and I still feel guilty over it, though I know she would want me to move on._

 _"You were born and my wife passed. Time went on and I continued to see Ellie, like I said, I was in love with her. I know the two of us could've gotten married. Bailey's birth brought us closer together, but then my work started to get in the way. I wanted to figure out what it was that could combat Diabolico and that's when I started my research and found out the existence of power rangers in other galaxies. I worked hard on experiments that would explain the power and I had started to figure out the basis of it. I started to test it and…unfortunately, you got caught in the blast, Avalon. Ellie went ballistic and we got into a massive fight about our future and Ellie left me. I got full custody of you two because I had a better paying job."_

 _"So you started to shuttle back and forth between the families," Bailey said. "So when we weren't with you, we were with Mum."_

 _Captain Mitchell nodded. "When I was with you, Dana would be sent to stay with my mother and father. It wasn't hard to keep up at first, but then things got too difficult. I was rising in the ranks at work. Ellie knew about you having been exposed to my work, Av, and was threatening to take you two away from me. I thought I was doing what was best and figured that it would be better if we had some time to talk things out on our own. So I sent you two to my sister, just for the time being. It wasn't until later that I found out that she never showed."_

 _"And you still didn't come back for us," Avalon said. "You've been following us. You know everything we've been doing. You knew about me and the Vipers and you knew how hard we were trying to survive."_

Bailey opened her eyes and smoothed her hair off her forehead. She looked around the room then at Avalon. "I think we can make this room work for us. We had to deal with a lot smaller space before."

Avalon smiled at Bailey's change of subject. "Yeah, I think I was at fault for that," She commented.

"Actually, I blamed you more for not allowing me to put posters up I my room," Bailey replied.

"With that sticky tack stuff? It'd just mark the walls and then I'd never get the security deposit back." Avalon ran her hand through her hair once more, shaking out a clump. "Not that I'd have gotten it anyway, yeah? Since the High-Flyers kicked down the door and mucked things up inside. Honestly, I'm surprised they haven't chased us down to get it."

"Chances are Mr. and Mrs. Scott paid for it," Bailey reminded her. She grinned. "Considering they're going to be our in-laws soon."

"Shut up, Bay."

"I'm just saying, you and Jason seem to be having a good time together." Bailey sat cross-legged on her bed and dropped her hands into her lap. She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know how you manage to do the whole long distance thing. Didn't really work for me."

Avalon tilted her head to the side and looked at her little sister in concern. "Bay, you're young. You've got plenty of time for dating. You might even meet someone here." She gestured towards the window and the two looked up to find a bug-eyed fish slowly swimming by. The girls laughed at the spectacle. "Okay, not underwater. I reckon that would've had more impact if we were above ground."

"I'm not worried about dating anyone here, Av," Bailey said honestly. "I just want to focus on trying to work things out with Dad."

Avalon looked at her for a long moment. "When's the last time you talked to Fred?" She asked.

Bailey managed a small smile as she thought about her ex-boyfriend. Sure, she was only fifteen years old and didn't have a lot of experience in dating but Fred Kelman had been a great start. And they were still best friends. The two had met not long after she transferred into Angel Grove Middle School and he had been nothing but nice to her since that meeting. He was interested in science and math as she was—though not to the same obsessive extent—and the two being the youngest of the ranger group stuck together a lot. He helped her out in the Command Center once learning about their identities as the rangers and things moved forward from there.

He was her first kiss, first best friend, first boyfriend. Sure, half the time they didn't know whether to hold hands or if they were really just friends, but she had a great time hanging out with him. Then things started to fall apart; she gave up her Ninja Powers to spend more time with him and her friends and to be a regular teenager. (Truth be told, the stress was starting to get to her as well; she had nightmares, could hardly listen to the sound of locker doors slamming shut without nearly hitting the ceiling, and bigger kids gave her anxiety). Then he told her that he and his dad were going to be taking some time away to travel and he had been doing so since then.

The last time she had talked to him had been two weeks before going to Mariner Bay when he called out of the blue. After getting through the initial small talk she admitted her worries about going to see him.

"You think I didn't worry about being with my dad this long?" Fred joked in reply. "I don't know if you remember from that Skydiving excursion, but my dad is clumsy." He laughed. "I can't believe we haven't been killed yet."

Bailey laughed back. "He's not that bad."

"You're right; I'm just trying to make you laugh."

"Thanks…I guess I'm just a little freaked out, you know? I haven't seen him in so long and now I'm going to try and take the time to actually get to know him as a person. Forgiving my mum was a lot easier."

"Everything's going to be fine, Bay. It won't be easy, considering you don't know him at all. But it'll be fine. You've gone through a lot worse than this."

"True."

They spoke a little while longer then they hung up. Now Bailey was trying to stay as positive as possible. But how was that supposed to work when she was just told that a demon that was supposedly locked away from 5000 years had come back…and had been the same one that had murdered someone who was very close to her and her friends?

 _"No! Stop!"_

 _Billy's throat burned raw with the effort of his screaming, watching as Scorpina continued to strike his mother over and over again in the head, face, and chest. Her screams were muffled behind the tape but it continued to instill fear in him he never knew he felt as each blow rained down. It was his worst fear. He had known he was putting his parents in danger the first time he took on the responsibility of being the blue ranger, especially as Rita and Zedd knew their identities._

 _He had hoped it would never get to that point and even when Goldar had started to count down when Bailey had teleported, there was a part of him that had hoped Goldar was just bluffing, that he wouldn't lay a hand on his mother. Each time Scorpina would smack her in the face, Billy felt as if he was the one being struck._

 _"Leave her alone," Rocky shouted. "She hasn't done anything to you."_

 _Goldar held out his hand, moving closer to the rangers. "Hand over the Power Coins and we'll let her go."_

 _Billy squeezed his eyes shut as Scorpina let out a victorious laugh and struck Lacey so hard that she and her chair both toppled over onto the floor. Her eyes squeezed shut as she writhed with pain and when she opened them again, she looked directly at Billy. Leaning forward in anguish, Billy strained his muscles, trying to break free._

 _Out of the corner of his eye he saw Avalon's hands suddenly move out from behind her back like Bailey's had done then struck out against the putty behind her. She pulled out her morpher and started to call out, but Goldar quickly moved over to her and knocked her power morpher out of her hands before flinging her to the floor._

 _"Av!" Adam called over to her._

 _"I warned you, rangers!" Goldar roared._

 _"Goldar, Scorpina, that's enough. You've done what Rita's asked," a disembodied voice said. "Because of you we've managed to get the green ranger to follow his plans. He's destroying the city as we speak."_

 _"No!" Kimberly shouted. "Tommy would never let that happen!"_

 _There was a swirl of gold light and Diabolico appeared before them, his arms crossed over his chest. His red eyes flashed as he looked over at Scorpina, who had finally halted in her movements. "We have the rangers right where we want them, I think now is the time to let them know what's been going on."_

 _Goldar scowled at the newer gold monster. "Our plan was to destroy the rangers."_

 _"And what better way to destroy them by destroying their will to fight first?" Diabolico walked over to Lacey and upright her. She glared at him and he reached over, pulling the tape from her mouth before untying her. "I think we have something to show them."_

 _"What's going on?" Rocky demanded._

 _Lacey got to her feet, rubbing her wrists and turned to Scorpina, glaring. "You nitwit!" She screeched, voice sounding just like Rita's. "You weren't supposed to hit me that hard! Just wait until I get my hands on you when this is all said and done!"_

 _Scorpina, having the grace to appear embarrassed, bowed her head. "I'm sorry my mistress," she apologized. "It won't happen again."_

 _"What'd you do?" Avalon growled, pushing herself up from the floor. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HER?"_

 _Lacey turned back to the rangers and held out her hand. Rita's magic wand appeared in her hand and as she waved the staff over herself, her appearance changed from Billy's mother to that of the space witch they had been battling against for the past couple of years. She laughed evilly as the rangers gasped in shock._

 _"I haven't done anything," Rita replied. Haughtily, she placed a hand flat against her chest before motioning to Diabolico with her wand. "That's a question you should be asking him."_

 _"I have done nothing other than exercise my abilities," Diabolico said in his low, menacing voice. "Though now that we have you cornered and the rest of the plan going smoothly, I'll show you what'll happen to the rest of your families." He waved a hand and swirls of gold energy filled the room, collecting together and forming a figure that dropped to the ground._

 _Aisha let out a cry of shock, covering her face with her hands. Rocky and Adam immediately shielded her gaze from view. Kimberly reached out and grabbed onto Avalon, who clutched her back just as tightly, the two staring at the figure in front of them._

 _Billy suddenly felt he had just been punched in the stomach as he stared down at the prone figure of his mother._

 _His heart hammered against his chest as he looked down at her lifeless eyes. Fingers twitching, he reached out to touch her, but knew as his hands neared her body that she was cold. He was a scientist, and recognized the signs of a dead body, when rigor mortis set in and everything surrounding it. It was a way of life and he had always viewed it in scientific ways, even entertaining the idea that after his passing he would donate his body to science so further advancements could be made._

 _He felt himself starting to shake uncontrollably and suddenly a long, low sound of ear filled his ears. It took him a second to realize that it was him, screaming for his mother in despair._

 _Next thing he knew, everything had gone dark and he felt his body hit the floor._

 _He blacked out._

Bailey shook her head as the memory filled her once more. There was so much pain and suffering they went through that day. Not just as the monsters coming to attack them on a more personal basis, but everyone in Angel Grove finding out that their schools, which were supposed to be safe, were not, in fact, safe at all. Rita and Zedd had become smart, deciding to attack them when they were the most vulnerable in school; they couldn't morph without revealing their secret, and at the same time they weren't able to get far enough away to make a plan of escape or a plan of action without the monsters finding out. Realizing Sabrina, Adam's girlfriend, was Scorpina and then having to see that someone so close to them was killed right in front of them…that was the hardest part.

Billy had become sort of an older brother to Bailey while they had been working together and he had become very close to Avalon, the two becoming best friends before realizing their mutual feelings for each other. It hurt the two of them the most; Billy lost his mother and Avalon lost the woman who had treated her as nothing other than a daughter while Bailey was closer to Billy's dad, David. The dark cloud of grief hovered over the house longer than Bailey could imagine and she saw a side of Billy she hoped to never see again.

 _Billy glanced over at the orange and purple rangers in irritation as they shoved a tray of food into his hands. All he had done was open the door to his room after they had knocked on it for ten minutes straight, and then he had it shoved into his hands. He cast a dismissive glance at the food before placing it on top of the dresser by the door._

 _Bailey sighed. "C'mon, Billy, you have to eat something."_

 _"I'm fine." He crossed back to his desk and sat down, leaning towards his backpack that was open, books and papers sticking out of the top. "I have a lot of stuff to do anyway."_

 _"Like?" Avalon crossed her arms over her chest. She watched him continue to put his belongings into his backpack and walked over, grabbing it from him. "What do you think you're doing, mate?"_

 _"Packing for school." Standing up, he held his hand out for the bag. "Do you mind?"_

 _Avalon and Bailey exchanged glances. Going to school? It had only been a few days since his mother had passed and he was going to go back to school? It was hard when David had gotten back to the house that day, shortly after the school had been put on a mandatory lockdown due to the investigation. He had raced home and spotted the three teenagers, demanding if they had heard anything from his wife. Billy, who had received the phone call from Bulk and Skull about it, had been the one to tell him that what happened. Of course he hadn't told his father that Diabolico had been the one to kill her. In fact, he wasn't sure how they were going to spin it in any way, but the damage had been done. David immediately collapsed, all of his worst fears coming true in that moment._

 _The two had collapsed against each other, sobbing and holding onto each other as hard as they could. Avalon and Bailey sat on the outside of the two, letting them have time to themselves. In a way, they understood how it felt, having figuratively lost most of their family in the past couple of years. But at the same time they felt it too. Lacey was someone that had become a mother figure to the two of them as they had been staying at the Cranstons, quickly trying to make them feel at home. She was really someone that had kept them all together, creating a loving family for all of them and now she was just…gone._

 _The past couple of days had been hard, there were people constantly calling the house, visiting, expressing their condolences. Then there was the media coverage, not only had a woman who was clearly healthy pass away, but it was during the time there was a monster attack on the high school, much like there had been the attack earlier. They were using her name as a sort of face for the campaign to create better evacuation plans for the city. Her face being everywhere was the worst part of it._

 _"Yes, I mind." The orange ranger pulled the backpack further away from him. "Smurf, you just lost your mum," she said calmly, patiently. "And we understand that it's hard, but acting like it didn't happen and continuing to go to school isn't going to help in the long run."_

 _"Avalon!" Billy reached out and painfully grabbed onto her wrists. As the seconds passed, he increased the pressure on her arms. Bailey's eyes widened in surprise and Avalon looked up at her best friend in surprise rather than shock or pain. "Let go of my fucking bag!"_

It took weeks for Billy to return to a sense of normalcy but it wouldn't be the last time the rangers lost someone. Evie Caldwell had been the next one they lost. She was the gold zeo ranger at the time, before being murdered in battle, passing her powers to Billy who then passed them on to Jason. But that had been later, when they were fighting the Machine Empire. It was then they truly realized they were fighting an intergalactic war and Bailey could barely think about doing it all again, let alone coming face to face with Diabolico.

Taking in a deep breath, Bailey looked over at Avalon and saw her staring at her phone, flipping it in her hand. "Are you going to call Billy?" Avalon raised her eyes but didn't say anything. "To tell him what's going on?"

"What's the point?" She asked. "I reckon he's not going to pick up. He hasn't any of the other times I've called."

"If you mention Diabolico he will," Bailey pressed gently. "He'll want to know. At least leave a voice message or something."

Avalon started to reply but was cut off when the door to the room opened and Captain Mitchell's assistant and the science technologist, Angel Fairweather, standing in the doorway. Avalon and Bailey both smiled when they saw her, having had met her before.

"Hi, Miss. Fairweather," Bailey greeted her.

Miss. Fairweather's smiled back at the two. "Avalon, Bailey, it's so great to see you again." She pushed her glasses up her nose. "I'm sorry that you came right at the time of some interesting developments in Mariner Bay. Especially as I understand you came to connect with Captain Mitchell."

"You're telling us," Avalon said. "It's like trouble follows us wherever we go."

"I reckon it follows you, Av," Bailey said. "I'm the good one."

"Shut up, Bay."

Miss. Fairweather smiled. "Yes, well, you need to come with me. I believe there's something you can help us with." With that, Miss. Fairweather led them back to Captain Mitchell's office, where Dana was already waiting. As soon as they arrived Captain Mitchell stood and addressed them with, "I need you to accompany Dana and my men to find these civilians."

Bailey looked over to find the secret service-esque men who had greeted them at the airport standing nearby.

"Are they going to be kidnapped, too?" Avalon asked.

Captain Mitchell cleared his throat while Dana sent an aside glance to Avalon. "I'd hardly say you were kidnapped, but these men and women are of the most importance to bring here." He handed her two black folders; one with a green stripe up the side, the other with a blue one. Dana took one that had a red stripe, and Bailey took one that had a yellow stripe. "Once you come into contact with them, please bring them here."

Bailey opened the folder in her hand and studied the picture of a young, bright smiling woman that stared back at her, holding onto roping gear. Her eyes then shifted to the name in the corner.

 _Kelsey Winslow._

Then Bailey leaned over to look at the ones that sat in Avalon's and Dana's hands.

 _Joel Rawlings._

 _Chad Lee._

 _Carter Grayson._

* * *

Carter Grayson sighed heavily, trying to catch his breath. Tilting his head back, he dumped a water bottle over his head to smear away the soot and smoke that managed to smear across his face. Then he grabbed his charred gloves with his teeth and dropped them to the ground and dusted off his hands. He started to rid himself of his firefighting gear, watching as his company men poured water over the smoldering building behind them.

He shook his head, water droplets and sweat dripping to the ground. He blinked rapidly as his eyes burned; sweat dripping into them, bringing the soot down as well. Grasping the bottom of his red t-shirt, Carter pulled it up over his head then drew it across his forehead to wipe the grime away. He picked up his water bottle and dumped the rest over his head, sinking down against the back of the fire truck. The minutes passed, every now and then he felt his fellow firefighters patting him on the shoulder and muttering that he 'did a good job' and they 'did all they could do'.

Carter didn't respond.

He didn't do a good job or did all he could do if he wasn't able to save everyone.

If only he could've saved everyone before he was pulled.

He had been doing a last minute sweep of the rooms when everything happened at once. He heard a small voice calling out to him from a nearby room and just as he was going to get to them, there was a sudden burst of flame, the energy knocking him off his feet and onto the ground. The walls became engulfed with flames and Carter turned around to see—or at least thought he saw a malicious figure standing in the fire, adding to the flames that swirled around.

Carter scrambled back to his feet and started to shout out for the screaming voice, but the ceiling started to cave in around him, his chief was screaming at him to get out, and he had to leave. Torn, Cater stood for a few seconds before the order was barked once more and he ran out of the building as fast as possible, taking a little girl with him as he went.

But that small voice haunted him. Was it a little kid? Was it an elderly person?

He didn't know and didn't want to know.

It was going to be with him for the rest of his life.

It was true when people said 'ignorance is bliss'.

"Excuse me—Oh!"

Carter looked up to see who was speaking to him then immediately stood. He reached for his shirt and scrambled to pull it back on as the young blond woman turned away, bringing a hand up to shield the side of her face. Carter glanced at the nametag on the front of her uniform—D. Mitchell—and immediately recognized her. Captain Mitchell's daughter, the one who stood beside him during all of his news and press conferences when the government presence had something to tell the public.

"I'm sorry," Dana apologized. "I should've waited for you to be decent."

"No, no it's my fault," Carter replied. "Uh, you uh…you wanted to speak with me about something?"

"Yes." Dana turned back to him, her blue eyes locking with his green ones. "I know this is a bad time, but you need to come with me."

What? Carter placed his hands on his hips, his eyebrows lowering in confusion. Dana took a step forward at his hesitation. "I know this is a bad time," she repeated. "But it is of the utmost importance." With that she turned on her heel and walked over to a limo that was waiting for them without a backwards glance.

Carter watched her for a moment before following her. If she was recruiting him for something…Carter slid into the limo along with Dana and looked at the two younger girls that were with them. Dana buckled up and nodded towards them. "Avalon, Bailey, this is Carter Grayson. He's the last one we needed." Then she nodded at Carter. "That's Avalon and Bailey Mitchell. I'm Dana."

"I know who you are," Carter murmured before stopping himself.

He cleared his throat and looked out the window as they pulled away, missing the small smile that came to Dana's face before her expression turned serious once more. The ride to the nearby heliport was silent. Then when they arrived Dana walked the group over to an African-American man, an Asian man, and a Caucasian woman.

"Carter Grayson, this is Kelsey Winslow, Chad Lee, and—"

"—Joel Rawlings, the Sky Cowboy," the African-American man interrupted. He reached up and tipped his hat. "But I'm sure you've heard of me."

"Pleasure to meet you," Carter said, nodding to each of them. The conversation turned into a brief awkward silence as Dana walked off to speak to the pilot. "So…they got you, too."

"I was finishing up a show when Avalon and Bailey over there explained that we needed to come with them to speak to a Captain Mitchell," Chad explained. He ran a hand over his wet hair. "I only wish they could've come when I wasn't smelling like fish."

"Oh, that's you?" Kelsey asked. She stated to laugh. "I thought I smelled something, I just wasn't going to say anything." She continued chuckling then thrust her hand out to the men, shaking their hands firmly. Carter's eyes widened in surprise when he felt her tight grip. "I'm Kelsey Winslow. They got me while I was rock climbing."

"Rock climbing?" Carter repeated in disbelief. He couldn't help it. Kelsey just looked so…so small. Not just in height but in stature; she was very thin and had a bright smile on her face, resembling a cheerleader than a rock climber. Then he looked closer, no, it was about right; her arms and legs had definite muscle definition, similar to those that did a lot of climbing. One of his fellow firefighters climbed in his free time and even owned a rock wall gym. "That's, uh, not something you hear every day."

"I know!" Kelsey didn't seem offended by his statement. "My family thinks I'm crazy. But I love the rush!"

"So, you all are just okay with the fact that we were kidnapped?" Joel demanded.

"You weren't kidnapped," Avalon spoke up, her Australian accent reaching their ears. Carter turned towards her, finding her watching them with an intense stare. "Kidnapping would entail being brought here against your will. I reckon we asked all of you to come with us, you didn't have to say yes, yeah?"

Bailey took a step forward. "Ignore my sister; she doesn't take to meeting new people very well." She waved a hand. "I'm Bailey and this is Avalon."

"So what do you two have to do with all of this?" Chad asked. "You seem a little young to be mixed up with government work."

"Well…what does a lifeguard and marine animal trainer have to do with the government?" Bailey asked.

"I don't know, you tell me. I had just finished a show when you three came to take me away."

"Yeah, me too," Joel agreed. He sniffed. "I thought you were fans."

Carter gave him a look, then his gaze shifted behind Joel and he stood up straight noticing Dana and an older man walking their way. The others followed his gaze and fell silent as well, waiting for the man to reach them.

"Good Afternoon," the man said.

Joel strolled over to the man and stood directly in front of him. "I don't know what it is you want, but you can't barge into or lives and take us like this without any explanation."

Carter winced as Captain Mitchell calmly regarded Joel. The man wasn't very imposing in stature and size, but the air he gave off definitely commanded respect, much like his chief. This wasn't going to turn out well. Carter shifted his gaze over to Dana and saw there was a light twinkle in her eye, as if she already knew what was coming and couldn't wait for it.

The man parted his lips and took a slow breath. "I'm Captain William Mitchell." He looked around at the rest of the group, making sure he had their full attention. "No one is holding you against your will, you're free to go," Captain Mitchell said calmly. He watched as Joel started to walk away and one of his right-hand men held up his hand, stopping Joel in his tracks. "That is…after you hear me out."

Bailey wondered why she suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu, and then figured it out in a few seconds.

He reminded her of Avalon.

* * *

 **A/N:** The action really started in the next one. What did you think? I'm already having fun writing in Carter's POV as well as writing the other rangers. I haven't seen Lightspeed Rescue in a long time so I hope I got their personalities right. Please let me know.

Thanks to **Guest, dguice, Adela, lizziestrong, TerraHart, and Ashley** for reviewing the first two chapters of the story.

 **~Av**


	4. Save The Day

**.:03:.**

 _Save The Day_

* * *

Bailey watched the newcomers' faces as her father went over what was going on once more. She could see the mystified wonder in Kelsey's and Chad's eyes, the disbelief in Joel's, and the calm rational in Carter's. Dana sat aside, sitting up straight in her chair, legs tucked to the side, hands folded in front of her as she listened to her father while Avalon sat next to her, slouched in her seat and watching her father closely.

Every now and then Avalon's eyes would dart to the opening to the room as someone walked by before they roved around the room once more. Bailey smiled a little, recognizing her sister's tactics to make sure no one or nothing was going to sneak up on her. A fight or flight tactic that seemed to never completely go away, no matter how relaxed she was. Being in a government official's office probably didn't do much to help her worries, especially hearing that Diabolico was the one they were now after.

Not that they could even help much; Avalon still had her Turbo powers, but Bailey didn't have any powers at all to help them. And she couldn't help but feel the insatiable need to help. Since having becoming a ranger in the first place it made her feel more whole than she had ever felt despite wanting to be 'normal'. She wouldn't say being normal was 'overrated' by any means but sometimes life was boring without this excitement.

A sigh escaped Bailey's lips as she leaned forward to rest her chin on her crossed arms and watched her father. Now if only they could start talking about the things they really needed to talk about.

Once he finished his story, Kelsey laughed lightly. "You want us to stop these demons?" She asked. Her bright eyes darted around the conference room from floor to ceiling. "You built this whole Aqua Base for that?" The disbelief was evident in her voice, but if it perturbed Captain Mitchell at all, he didn't show it.

Instead, Captain Mitchell nodded though his mustache twitched in amusement. "This Aqua Base is a government sanctioned headquarters that oversees the safety and protection of this city. It has taken many years of work and dedication but we can now put project Lightspeed into action. Because of your skills you have been chosen to use the Lightspeed Power to rescue the city."

There was a brief moment of silence. Bailey watched their faces even closer now. Even Avalon had perked up and come to attention at the mention of the power. As soon as Diabolico was mentioned she should've known these guys were going to be the next team. Not even that, but looking at the profiles of the rangers that Dana had been tasked to recruit should've been her first clue.

They were all extraordinary in their own ways; a sky pilot, an extreme athlete, a marine trainer and stuntman, and a firefighter. Those were all the best qualities she could find if she had been making her own new ranger team. Their daredevil attitude as well as their different dedications to land, air, and sea made them well rounded enough.

"I think you're nuts!" Joel declared. He brought his hands up to his chest. "I'm a Sky Pilot, not some sort of an assassin."

"Power Rangers aren't assassins," Avalon spoke up quickly. "They do their best to save the city from the every bloody threat that comes their way."

"I still think you're nuts," Joel declared. "Monsters and demons and saving the city from threats? Isn't that what the police force is for?"

"If the police were equipped with this sort of power, you wouldn't be needed," Dana pointed out, narrowing her eyes towards him. "You have an extraordinary opportunity in front of you and you're not going to take it?"

"I fly planes for a living," Joel insisted. He motioned over to Chad and Kelsey. "He swims with whales and teaches people about marine life, she rock climbs and teaches people about saving the environment. You could've knocked her off the freaking mountain when you were recruiting her. And this guy fights fires; I think we already do enough for Mariner Bay."

"But they wouldn't have come to us if this was some sort of a joke," Chad pointed out.

"Kidnapped us, you mean." Joel placed his hands onto the table and used it for leverage to push himself up. "I heard what you had to say and I still think you're nuts." He turned to leave, only stopping when Avalon spoke up once more.

"Then you don't deserve the power," She said. Her dark eyes flashed. "Only those who have the utmost respect for the planet and the lives around them are able to wield the power. It's not just given to you, there's something deep down inside that makes you destined to be a ranger. And if all you want to do is fly your stupid plane around in fancy tricks, then by all means, mate, go ahead and do that. We don't need you here."

Captain Mitchell held up his hand. "Please, we don't need arguing at a time like this."

Carter, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly sat up as if a fire had been lit underneath him. His eyes widened and he looked around for a second. "That would explain it," he murmured.

"Hmm?" Dana immediately rounded on him. "Explain what?"

"I-in the fire," Carter explained. He looked around the room at everyone then back to Captain Mitchell, whose eyes narrowed as he listened. "I saw something in the flames when fighting that fire, when saving that little girl. It looked like a monster. It must've been one of the demons."

Dana gasped. "Father," she said.

Captain Mitchell nodded. There was a sudden beeping sound from the computer panel behind him. He walked over to a screen that had a nearby headset and quickly pulled it over his ear. He listened for a second then gave the simple command of; "Show me" before an image of the city being destroyed came up on screen.

Bailey gasped lightly, watching as the monsters on screen—Ghouligan and the Batlings as her father explained—continued to attack the city and nearby civilians who became caught in the crossfire. No matter how many times she had worked as a ranger, she couldn't help but feel horrified to see all of the people that were crushed under falling debris and taking cover behind little protection. There had been enough carnage throughout Angel Grove; she couldn't fathom it happening anywhere else.

Captain Mitchell took in a deep breath and turned back to the new rangers. "The city needs you," he declared.

"I'm in," Carter said immediately.

"Me too," Chad agreed.

"I want to help," Kelsey said.

"Okay, fine," Joel said begrudgingly.

Captain Mitchell nodded once more then motioned to Dana. She picked up a black briefcase off the floor and rested it atop the table. Flicking open the locks, she turned it towards the group. Bailey leaned forward, feeling her heart sink when she saw there were only five devices that resembled morphers, nestled inside.

 _What did you expect, Bay?_ She asked herself. _You came back here to work things out with your father. Not to save the world again._

"These are your Rescue Morphers," Captain Mitchell explained. "Crafted and meticulously designed to give you the utmost amount of power. They're worn on your wrist and when you call out the words 'Lightspeed Rescue' you'll morph into the power rangers."

"But father, there's five of them," Dana pointed out.

"The fifth one is yours." Captain Mitchell finally gave a small smile as he regarded his daughter.

"Mine?" She repeated.

"I've been training you for years for this, Dana. I know you can handle it…if you want it."

Dana nodded. She reached into the briefcase and pulled out the remaining morpher. She turned it this way and that, studying the design before going to stand with the others, who were looking over their morphers as well.

"It's time to get to work," Captain Mitchell declared.

"What about them?" Kelsey asked, nodding to Avalon and Bailey.

"Avalon and Bailey have a special reasoning to be here as well," Captain Mitchell said. Bailey was surprised to find a note of pride in his voice, as he hadn't spoken directly to them in a while. "You see, they were once power rangers, too." Bailey caught Avalon's eye and the two shared a smile. "If there's anyone that can help lead you in this battle against evil, it's them."

"But I don't have my powers anymore," Bailey pointed out. Still, she couldn't ignore the excitement that trilled through her. Anything to be able to help.

"Avalon does, and I know that you'll be a great asset in the technology bay," Captain Mitchell said. He pressed his lips together. "As I understand it, you have a very extensive background in engineering, not just in your own interests but through other power ranger weaponry. Your skills will be greatly appreciated."

Bailey nodded.

She could do this.

"You need to go now," Captain Mitchell said, turning back to the screen. "Bailey, come up here with me."

Bailey nodded again and went to do as she was told. She stopped by Avalon and grasped her arm. "Stay safe, yeah?"

"You got it, Goober."

Standing next to her father, Bailey pulled on another headset and waited to do as she was told.

* * *

With Carter at the wheel of the Rescue Rover, the rangers drove out of the Aqua Base and into the city. He glanced into the rearview mirror, spotting Avalon's Wild Fire Turbo zord, a motorcycle, steadily keeping pace behind them. Then they were in the city and Carter followed the sounds of screaming and rapid footsteps.

"Over there!" Dana called from the passenger seat. She thrust her arm out in front of Carter, making him jump and reach out, pushing her hand down.

"Please, don't do that," Carter said.

"Sorry."

Tires squealing, Carter pulled up on the scene and the rangers watched as civilians raced their way, screaming in terror as Batlings chased after them. Ghouligan laughed uproarisly as he continued to send shot after shot of flame into the air, knocking down civilians as they ran, trying to keep from getting burned. Carter glanced at Chad, Kelsey, and Dana, who all looked terrified, suddenly wondering if they had made the right decision to help them out.

Carter swallowed hard, pushing aside his fear to give the command for the rangers to get out and help them. The others hesitated for a moment before climbing out of the car and raced towards the Batlings, taking them on to give the civilians time to get away. Once the Rescue Rover was clear, Carter stomped his foot on the gas and charged the vehicle towards Ghouligan.

"Not so fast!" Ghouligan sent a blast of fire Carter's way and he brought up his hand to shield his eyes from the exploding windshield that sent glass everywhere, pulling the car to a stop.

Ghouligan then reached into the car and grasped the sleeve of Carter's jacket. With an almighty tug he lifted the firefighter up out of the car and into the air. The world spun around him before Carter crashed to the ground, gasping for air. He looked around to find his new accomplices fighting hard to keep the Batlings from besting them. They cried out in pain as they struck in the arms, legs, and chest and were knocked to the ground, only to get back up and start fighting all over again.

Only Avalon was able to withstand their might, taking on numerous ones at a time.

"They're…too strong," Carter whispered. He struggled to push himself up, feeling his body completely give out with exhaustion. He had only just been thrown by Ghouligan and it took more out of him that he thought it would. It had to be the adrenaline; the same thing that made him pumped up when going in to fight a fire and left him sleeping like a baby at the end of the day.

He needed to push through it.

"Rangers, you need to use your morphers," Captain Mitchell's voice came from the mentioned piece on Carter's wrist. "That's the only way you'll stop them."

"One you do that, you'll have the arsenal you need to take them down," Bailey added.

After knocking the Batlings away from her, Avalon jumped backwards, giving herself some clear space. A smirk graced her features. "Well, it's about time," she said. Then she pulled what resembled a key out of her pocket. "Shift into Turbo!" Avalon called. The communicator on her wrist turned into a morpher. She shifted her hands as if turning a steering wheel of a car and inserted the key into the morpher on her wrist, turning the key to unlock her morphing power in a blast of orange light. "Wild Fire, Turbo Power!"

She morphed. "Power Rangers, Turbo!"

Carter got to his feet and gathered together with Joel, Kelsey, Chad, and Dana. Carter glanced at each of them before taking a step towards Ghouligan. "Hey you, with the hot temper. You want to destroy Mariner Bay? Then you have to go through us first."

"Bring it on!" Ghouligan cried.

"Ready?" Carter asked.

"Ready!" Came the team's response. They brought up their morphers. "Lightspeed Rescue!" The five rangers morphed into the Red, Blue, Green, Pink, and Yellow Lightspeed Rescue Rangers, their new power immediately coursing through their veins. The nearby civilians immediately started to cheer once recognizing their new saviors. "Power Rangers, Rescue Ready!"

Ghouligan growled, flames erupting off him as he saw the new enemies to go against. He thrust out his fist towards the rangers. "Batlings, destroy them!"

The rangers immediately raced towards the Batlings. Carter blocked the sword a Batling tried to swing into his face, and did a slid arching kick to its face, knocking it over. Then he grabbed the arm of another Batling and flipped him onto the ground. Joel did a flying kick towards a Batling but found his foot grabbed by the enemy. He was pushed high into the air. As he flipped over, Joel pulled out a blaster and shot a Batling in the face. Chad used his karate background to take down as many Batlings as he could, outsmarting their quick maneuvers with his own blocks and sent a strong punch back into its face knocking it over. Kelsey and Dana teamed up against the Batlings that came their way, using their swords and blasters to their advantage. When Kelsey shot her blaster towards Batlings, she then turned and shot towards Dana, who turned her sword aside and deflected the blast into the Batlings.

"Turbo Wild Hammer!" Avalon summoned her war hammer and started to swing it back and forth, taking down the Batlings that appeared in front of her. "You guys take care of Ghouligan! I'll handle the Batlings!" She declared.

"Are you sure?" Kelsey asked.

Avalon lifted her Turbo Wild Hammer as it glowed a bright orange, and spun in a large circle, hitting the first Batling. It crashed into the one next to it and like dominoes they all started to fall over in a blast of energy. Once they were out of the way, she went onto the next wave of Batlings, taking them down with ease.

"I think she's sure," Joel said.

"Guys, you need to take down Ghouligan as soon as possible," Bailey said to them. "The structural damage he's dealing with his fire is already causing enough trouble for everyone. Anything else and there may be more casualties. Use your Rescue Blasters!"

Carter nodded. "Over here!" He called to Ghouligan, adding "Rescue Blasters, Ready!" when he turned. The five got their blasters together and fired against Ghouligan, striking him head on. Ghouligan fell to the ground and erupted in an electrified explosion.

"Lightspeed, power down!"

Civilians cheered the rangers as the rangers stumbled from the excess drain of power. Still, they couldn't keep the smiles off their faces once the euphoria set in. They defeated Diabolico and saved the city and got some awesome new powers all at the same time. If that's what it was like every time they were going to face off against the demons then they could really do it.

"Good job guys," Bailey said.

"Congratulations on a job well done," Captain Mitchell added.

Avalon crossed her arms, nodding as she watched the rangers congratulate each other. "Whatever happened to keeping your ranger identity a secret?" She asked.

"With these powers, with this city, we feel it is better for their civilian identities to be known," Captain Mitchell explained. "That way they will have the respect and dedication of Mariner Bay behind them."

"Sorry, but I follow Zordon's rules. I can't give up my identity," Avalon said. She got back onto her Wild Fire zord and raced back to the Aqua Base.

Back in Captain Mitchell's office, Bailey pulled off her headset, smiling all the while. She looked up when Captain Mitchell made a disapproving sound in the back of his throat and looked over to Bailey, who looked back at him. After a few seconds she looked away.

"Do you think they can really handle this?" Bailey asked. "This power seems to be much more advanced than we've used before."

"I'm surprised its source code doesn't seem familiar to you," Captain Mitchell said.

"What? Why?"

"Because Billy Cranston helped me create it."

* * *

It didn't long for the rangers to make their way back to the base. But when they did Captain Mitchell was in a better mood than he had been before. All of the workers on the Aqua Base gathered around to cheer on the new rangers while Avalon stood to the side of the group with her sister.

The noise immediately slowed when Captain Mitchell walked over, his hands clasped behind his back as he regarded the rangers. "There is a time to celebrate, but now is not the time," he explained. "Now, Diabolico knows you exist and he's ready for more."

Dana blinked in surprise. "But we just defeated him, didn't we?"

"Oh no, that was only one of his monsters."

"Diabolico is much more ruthless than this guy was," Avalon added. "If anything, he used Ghouligan as a test to see how strong you guys are and to plan accordingly afterward."

"If we want to defeat him, you have a lot of work to do," Captain Mitchell agreed. "We all do."

Dana nodded and brought her hand up to her forehead in a salute, with the rest of her team following suit.

Avalon and Bailey were the only ones who didn't.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks Guest for the suggestion of watching the season on Netflix, I don't have Netflix but I did find it on Dailymotion. The cracks are already starting to form within the group all because of Captain Mitchell's presence and I can't wait for that story to play out. Of course there are other plots coming in as well.

Thanks to **Guest, A.J. Grey, Adela, and lizziestrong** for reviewing the first two chapters of the story.

 **~Av**


	5. Making Plans

_**.:04:.**_

 _Making Plans  
_

* * *

Bailey gently kicked her legs back and forth as she lounged no her bed. She rested her chin in her hand as she looked over the training manuals she, her sister, and the rangers had been given by their father. Manuals for everything within the Aquabase; how its run, the hierarchy of the personnel, and all of the requirements to the rules and regulations that they were expected to follow while living there.

Avalon had given one look at it before tossing it aside and leaving the room. Bailey wasn't so surprised. There were a lot of things they needed to get used to now. While they were with their father they would be living under the ocean in the Aquabase, they had to go to their classes in the morning, and join the rangers in their exercises when the time came. Not to mention having to treat everyone that worked in the Aquabase with respect, giving those who were in uniform a salute whenever they crossed paths.

It was a government operation, Bailey understood that. But there wasn't anything in the manual that said how she was supposed to act around her father who was not only her superior in terms of his work within the Aquabase. But also someone she hadn't been around in years. Someone who had given up their parental rights to her. Someone who, in all terms of the word, didn't deserve her respect. So she was supposed to just go over and give it to him? She was tired of the tension but what else could she do?

There weren't many times she had to speak to her father—Captain Mitchell. Bailey rolled her eyes. That was the part that annoyed her most, that she couldn't even refer to him as her father. He was always Captain Mitchell. Why would she sit back and call him that when he hadn't spoken to her in years? Especially when the first thing he told her was that he perfected the Lightspeed Rescue powers with the Billy's help. That threw her for a loop when he told her, stunned her into silence. What was Billy doing in Mariner Bay? Was he still in Mariner Bay? And why would he not say anything?

But Captain Mitchell has been right. She should've recognized the source code as Billy's work. She worked alongside him for the Turbo powers and looked over his code as much as anyone else. Though she was the only one who truly understood it. Captain Mitchell hadn't said anything about it since then and neither had Bailey. Mostly because she had no idea how to bring it up to Avalon and what her reaction would be. She and Billy hadn't talked since he left for the Peace Conference and MIT and Avalon decided it would be a good idea to go off to university. Bailey was still doing her classes in school, coming up on high school soon, even though she had the grades and the smarts to graduate from high school already if she wanted.

"But you wanted to be a normal teenager," Bailey muttered to herself. She shook her head, turning the pages in her training manual. "And make sure you had everything you needed to change the world. Even when you had that ability with your ranger powers."

Bailey closed her training manual and sat up, twisting around to look out the window of her room. Fish swam by, their little tails wiggling back and forth to propel them forward. In the distance there looked to be a shark swimming around. Otherwise, everything seemed to be as normal as could be. With a sigh, Bailey sat back against her heels, continuing to kneel on her bed. She looked around the room. The small room that was a tiny fraction of their rooms back home.

 _Home._ "I wonder how mum's doing," Bailey mused.

She wondered a lot of things, actually. She wondered what Tommy was doing as he was on the road with his uncle. She wondered how Kat was doing in London with the dance company. She wondered how Rocky's back was doing after his accident. She wondered how Adam and Tanya were doing in school. She wondered how Billy was doing at MIT. The only one she didn't have to worry about so much was Jason now that Av was dating him. Still, who would've thought that them splitting up would've actually split up the team so easily.

Bailey looked over as there was a knock on the door to her room. "Come in!" Bailey called. She got to her feet when the door to her room opened and Miss. Fairweather walked in. She held a clipboard to her chest and smiled brightly at the young girl. "Hi, Miss. Fairweather. How ya going?"

"I'm doing just fine, Bailey," Miss. Fairweather replied. She looked over at Avalon's empty bed. Her smile faded a little bit. A sigh escaped her lips and she turned back to Bailey. "Have you made any progress with your training manuals?"

"As much as I can. I have a really good memory; I barely have to look at these books before I get everything." Bailey tapped her temple. "I never realized how much was needed for things to run around here. Especially in terms of how this place is run."

"Yes, well, we take everything very seriously here. Especially when it comes to the safety of the residents of Mariner Bay." Miss. Fairweather pushed her glasses up her nose. "I heard that Avalon had some issues with the way we've run some of our practices." Bailey lifted an eyebrow. "And that you may be against them as well."

"I'm not sure I follow you," Bailey said slowly.

"Something about the rangers letting the citizens of Mariner Bay knows their identities."

"Oh." Oh, that. Yeah, that had thrown Bailey, too. As long as she could remember, she and the other rangers had been told time and time again that they were not to let anyone know of their identities. Not only for their own safety—which didn't make much sense considering how Rita and Zedd knew their identities right from the get go—but for the safety of everyone around them. Zack seen the consequences of not following that rule. He chose to morph and fight the members of the Vipers that had been harassing Avalon and he lost his powers because of it. "Yes, well, that's something that we haven't had a lot of experience with, yeah? We were constantly told to keep things a secret."

"As Captain Mitchell explained to you, we want to make it that the citizens understand who are the people that are protecting them. If they see they're the ones with the ordinary jobs and are willing to show their patriotism and love for their fellow man by donning a spandex suit, then who are we to stop them? The idea of their safety is the most important and we ran tests to see how the citizens would react."

"You ran tests?"

"We run constant streams of tests and experiments. The one that was the most conclusive was of the ranger identities. We gave them the idea of knowing who the power rangers were and the overwhelming response was that the citizens felt safer if they knew who it was."

"But what about everyone around them? Their friends and family? Their co-workers."

"Everyone will know. We're having a press conference soon to specifically reveal them to the public."

"No, what about _their_ safety? The ones who are closer to the rangers are the ones who tend to be the most in danger. Not the rangers themselves." Bailey pressed her lips together, watching as Miss. Fairweather took in a deep breath and pushed her glasses up her nose. She didn't mean to become so impassioned about this, let alone take it out on Miss. Fairweather.

You need to get used to everything, Bay. It's never going to be the same as it used to be, she reminded herself. Bailey took in a breath and managed a smile to calm Miss. Fairweather. "What was it that you wanted to talk to me about? You must've come here for something."

"Yes, where is Cadence?"

"She goes by Avalon. And she went out."

"Do you know where?"

"No." That was a lie. Bailey always knew where Avalon went, she never lied about it. Just as Bailey never lied to Avalon about where she was. The girls only had each other for a long time of their life, there wasn't going to be any secrets between the two of them. Between them and others? Plenty. "But she should be back soon."

"Yes, well, I am to take you and the rest of the rangers around the science bay for you to see the different weapons and machinery we have been working on. Specifically with the zords that have been Rescue Zords for the rangers to use. But we'll catch her up later. Please follow me."

Bailey nodded and grabbed her keys, locking the room behind her before she followed Miss. Fairweather around the halls of the Aquabase. She wasn't going to take any chances. Their private life was private for a reason. There was enough they had given up to try and work things out with their father, they didn't need to give up any more.

Miss. Fairweather pushed her glasses up her nose and grabbed onto a nearby cart, placing a file folder on it. Grabbing the handle of the cart, she pushed it towards the science bay with Bailey following close behind…close enough to jump out of the way when Joel walked backwards into Miss. Fairweather's cart, knocking the two over as she did so.

Bailey gasped in surprise. "Are you alright, Miss. Fairweather?"

"Yes, yea, I'm fine." Miss. Fairweather patted around for her fallen glasses. Bailey quickly scooped them up and handed them to her. She gave a grateful smile, putting them on then turned to the mess that had been made. "Oh dear."

"I'm really sorry," Joel apologized. He picked everything up as quickly as he could and flashed her a charming smile. "I'm Joel."

"Miss. Fairweather," she said, shaking his hand. Joel held onto her hand longer than a handshake should've allowed. The charming smile didn't leave his face as he did so. Miss. Fairweather smiled back and pulled her hand for a few seconds before yanking it back out completely. She cleared her throat, smoothing out the sides of her lab coat. Bailey looked back and forth between the two and smiled smugly.

She knew what was going on, even if they didn't. "I believe we've met before," Miss. Fairweather said. She tilted her head and studied Joel for a long moment. "You looked to be in quite a hurry."

"Yeah." Joel's eyes shifted. For a moment his smile faded, then it was back full force, this time with even more confidence and charm than seconds before. "I, uh, I have a meeting with Captain Mitchell. Top secret. You know, probably another one of those life and death missions."

"Oh, I reckon you mean like the fight against Ghoulgian," Bailey finally spoke up. Joel briefly glanced at her before turning his attention back to Miss. Fairweather. "And how you all were almost defeated before you morphed and even then he gave you lot a run for your money."

Miss. Fairweather stifled a laugh, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth. Then she regained her composure and said, "Sounds dangerous."

"Yeah, well, danger comes with a job." Joel reached up to tip his hat, then made a show of the morpher that sat on his wrist. He motioned to it, tapping the face with his fingertips so a light clinking sound emanated. "This is called a morpher. You see, I'm the green ranger."

He continued to tap his fingers. But he must've pushed something because Kelsey's voice came out of the speakers with a urgency to her words. _Joel, you're late again. You're supposed to be with us at this meeting. Hurry up!_

Now Bailey did her best not to laugh out loud while Joel hurried to silence his morpher. He worked his hardest to turn it off but the sounds of the complaint still continued to move through his morpher until he finally managed to silence it. Joel cleared his throat and said, "So uh, maybe I'll see you again."

Miss. Fairweather's eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second. Then she grasped the handle of her cart and started pushing once more. "I have a feeling we're destined to." She watched him walk away. Bailey crossed her arms, shaking her head.

"You're not going to tell him are you?" She asked. Miss. Fairweather gave her a knowing look in response and continued to lead the two to the science bay. "So Captain Mitchell has informed me that you'll be spending a lot of time here, overseeing the work that is done for the rangers. It's common knowledge that you've done a lot of work with the powers the last teams of rangers have used."

"Most of it was done by Billy," Bailey said modestly. "But I did have a lot of responsibility for things as time went on. I even traveled to Muiranthias to help the rangers with their Turbo powers as they first started using them."

"And you made the zords yourselves?"

"Off of blueprints that used influences from the past zords."

"That's very impressive for a young woman your age."

"Thank you."

Bailey followed Miss. Fairweather into the science bay. She looked around at all of the plainclothes and high ranking scientists that were working hard. "So this is the science bay, where all of the technology that we create will be worked on. But, specifically, Captain Mitchell wants to show you the weapons bay."

"Am I going to be designing weapons?"

"All of these are government regulated so as soon as you get clearance to create then that's what you'll do. At the moment we're just asking for your input and ideas as things move on." Bailey frowned. Miss. Fairweather seemed to note her disappointment for she started to stay something, becoming cut off when Captain Mitchell walked into the room with Carter, Dana, Chad, and Kelsey dutifully following along behind him.

"This is the weapons bay!" He was saying. "Everything you need to take on the demons have been designed, built, and tested right here." He held out his arm and motioned towards Miss. Fairweather. He nodded at her and she smiled and nodded back."I want you to meet the genius behind everything. From your rescue morphers to your newest weapons. Rangers, this is Miss. Fairweather."

Miss. Fairweather visibly swelled with pride as she smiled over at her boss. "Thank you, Captain." The she smiled over at the rangers. "Welcome to Lightspeed! Diabolico will stop at nothing to destroy the city and everyone in it. It's my job to make sure you stay one step ahead of him and the city. Which is why we've developed this." She motioned to a monitor beside her that project an image from inside a nearby hanger. Bailey peered at the screen, noticing the five multi-colored vehicles that resembled the zords she and her friends had used before. But this time appearing more like trains than anything else. "These are your Rail Rescues."

"Trains?" Kelsey blurted out in surprise. Her expression was one of intense confusion and, as Bailey noted, disappointment. Then her green eyes widened and she slapped her hand over her mouth, realizing the mistake she made. Carter, despite standing with his hands behind his back in a formal position, blinked rapidly, Dana chewed her lower lip, Chad glanced at Captain Mitchell and looked away.

Bailey couldn't help but gasp lightly.

Captain Mitchell looked at her with a face set in stone. But Miss. Fairweather smiled, not seeming to be offended.

"Much more than trains, I assure you," she said to them. "The Rail Rescues are your zords. The weaponized machinery that comes together to create a zord that will aid you in the fight against Diabolico and his monsters. That's what we've been working on as of late, but there have been other pieces of weaponry that we've finished recently, too."

"Miss. Fairweather, what's the power source to these zords?" Bailey asked, turning her attention back to the screen. "The last few zords that we've used, their power source came from the zords beforehand. The turbo from the zeo, the zeo from the mighty morphin…but even with the mighty morphin' zords they had their own alien-esque power source from the Great Power."

"That's a good question, Bailey," Miss. Fairweather said. She smiled at her, clearly impressed, and placed her hand on her shoulder. "We'll get into that once I show you everything else around here and in the technical bay."

"We'd like to get your input into our weaponry," Captain Mitchell explained. "You're definitely the best for the job."

Carter held up his hand. "I don't mean to speak out of turn, Captain, but she's just a kid."

"I'm almost fourteen," Bailey replied.

"And she has much more experience in what you are doing than any of the rest of us have combined. As a ranger and as a technical advisor. I expect you to treat her with the same respect you give me, despite her age," Captain Mitchell said.

Bailey glanced at her father in confusion. He glanced back at her. This was the first time he had ever defended her like that, the first time he had even talked up her abilities. All of the other times it was like she was in his way or he was spending too much of his time apologizing for something he had done in his past. She felt a thrill of pride, but it was nearly snuffed out by frustration.

Why was he doing it now and why hadn't he done it before?

Bailey was broken out of her thoughts when Avalon turned the corner and came to a stop. She looked towards the ceiling and let out a breath. Captain Mitchell held up a hand towards the rangers and walked to his daughter. Bailey glanced at Dana, who looked at her then looked away, lifting her chin as she moved into what was similar to Carter's resting pose.

"Where have you been?" Captain Mitchell asked Avalon.

"Out," She replied.

"Out where?"

"Outside. I had things to do."

"You were meant to be reading your training manuals and joining us for a tour of the Aquabase as well as getting a better understanding of the weapons lab and the technology to be used with the Lightspeed Rangers," he said. Avalon shrugged. Captain Mitchell's eyes narrowed and he let out a huff through his nose. "Please follow me to my office."

"No worries."

Bailey looked over at her sister as she walked by her. Avalon gave her a half smile and followed after her.

Bailey then looked at her feet. She wasn't sure how to feel. On one hand, Avalon was acting nothing short of a brat, but on the other…they had been hurt by him long enough that she felt he deserved it. They were going to have to figure it out they were going to move forward.

Diabolico looked out at the red lightning that shot around the demon palace. A stone temple in the shape of a demon's skull where Diabolico and the rest of his demonic generals worked out of. He clenched his hand into fist and turned to face the rest of his cohorts. His red eyes glowed with pure malice.

"We must find the power ranger's base and destroy it," he growled. "And them along with it. I never expected to see any of those power rangers again. Them watching their mother die…that should've been enough to keep them from attempting to fight ever again."

"I already found their base," Lokie said. He waved his hands back and forth as if under duress. "But its under water, and you know what the water does to us." He looked at Diabolico curiously. "What happened with you and those rangers?"

"The queen won't be pleased," Vypra said, turning the attention to her. She looked over at a small, red dragon that sat in the cushion of the throne, wrapped up in its wings, a binkie in its mouth. "We're supposed to be looking after Impus, but if the rangers continue to defeat us...we won't be able to protect the Shadow World more than we'll be able to take over this city."

"This city," Diabolico spat. "Is rightfully hours. These puny humans destroyed it and have taken over. We need to take it back." He turned to the other monster with them. "Jinxer come here, I need a monster."

"Yes sir, Diabolico, whatever you want."

"I want a monster evil enough to wipe this entire city off the face of the earth," Diabolico growled. "But leave the purple and orange ranger to me. I want to destroy them myself."

* * *

 **A/N:** Ahh, I missed writing about my girls. Powerless and Beautiful Disaster are fun, but I missed Av and Bay. That being said, I'm updating New Beginning next and then Powerless and Beautiful Disaster after that. I do still plan on having the other seasons that I hadn't wrote for to be done with one-shots. The next one I'm working on is for in Space and it should be up soon.

Thank you for your guys' patience with my lack of updates due to traveling and because of FFN's alerts issues. I post on my twitter (AvalonAvenue) about the status of my updates as well as am now cross-posting my Avalon series to ao3 (also under the name AvalonBay).

Thanks to **Adela and lizziestrong** for reviewing.

 _ **~Av**_


	6. Finding Her Place

_**.:05:.**_

 _Finding Her Place  
_

* * *

Bailey walked back into hers and Avalon's living quarters, finding her sister sitting on her bed, knees drawn up to her chest and shading something on her sketchpad. If Bailey had to guess, it was a representation of their father. Especially considering she was stabbing at a part of the page with hard jabs of her fist.

"What happened?" Bailey asked, lowering herself to her bed.

"He went on and on about how I needed to be more responsible and how I need to be a part of this team. And that he's doing a favor by taking us in while we're here." She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I reckon it's all bull and he's just trying to save face."

"Well, you did embarrass him a little," Bailey pointed out.

Avalon snorted. "I didn't know robots could feel embarrassed."

A light giggle came to Bailey's lips. But she did her best not to let them become too loud in case someone working closely with him—like Miss. Fairweather—was nearby. The last thing any of them needed was for their private conversations to be spread around. That's even what the new rangers had worried about. Joel went on a long tirade about how he valued his privacy and how was he supposed to entertain women while they were staying at the AquaBase. That's when their dad had made sure to let them know that they were to have certain hours on the weekend open to go into town and o whatever they wanted in their fee time, if they received the privilege from their training and studies during the week.

"What is this? A prison?" Joel then demanded.

Even Avalon's upper lip curled in distaste at the idea. She was already doing college classes long distance and was working as a waitress to make some money. Now she could only go out on the weekends if she went to all the raining and other classes that they were to do at the AquaBase? It wasn't so bad for Bailey, honestly. She loved to learn and she was already going to be in high school classes for most of the day anyway. Going back to work on Power Ranger stuff, training and working in the technology bay would be a good change of pace.

Besides, she'd never had that amount of responsibility before. She was going to be working alongside Miss. Fairweather on the zords and weapons. If they were anything like the Turbo weapons she created with Billy, it'd be an easy feat. But these were government official materials and they were probably worked on since she and her sister had their Mighty Morphin' powers.

"I'm starting to understand how Joel thinks this place is a prison," Avalon muttered.

Bailey's eyebrows came together. "Huh?" She didn't get it.

Avalon turned her head and looked at her sister. "Dad grounded me. Which is ridiculous because he shouldn't have been able to ground me."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because he gave up his parental rights to us. We're adopted by another family. Why should I listen to anything he says anymore? He shouldn't be able to ground me."

"Well…" Bailey pressed her lips together. This was something she'd even questioned herself but it was something that probably affected her big sister even more. She'd known their father longer and continuously blamed herself for his decision to do so. "Why do you still call him Dad then?"

"I'm sorry?" Avalon blinked in surprised. Almost as if she hadn't expected Bailey to shoot back her statement like that.

Bailey shrugged. She kicked her legs back and forth, gently scuffing the tip of her sneaker into the ground. "I mean, if you think that because we were adopted he shouldn't be able to ground us, or tell us what to do, or look out for us even, then why do you still call him Dad?"

"Must be a reflex," Avalon said. She shrugged, turning back to her drawing. Bailey craned her neck to look at the drawing. She wasn't quite sure, but it looked like it was a tiger of some sort. Or maybe a cemetery, she wasn't quite sure. Bailey suddenly felt a little wistful. It hadn't been too long since she'd given up her powers but even before then she hadn't listened to her lion spirit in too long.

Even before she had figured out her ninja spirit it guided her. Helped her aid Fred, Bulk, and Skull in the resistance against Ivan Ooze and his bid to try and take over Angel Grove. Made her as strong as the others despite their age difference and her insecurities in her real life. There were so many factors that had made it harder to still be a ranger as time went on, but her lion spirit helped her through it all. That and having so many people around to talk to.

"So, what am I going to do?" Bailey finally asked.

"Well, I was going to show you around the high school you were going to go to, but it looks like I can't do that now," Avalon said. She lowered her voice, looking apologetic. "Sorry, Goober, I know you were looking forward to that."

"It's a school, sis," Bailey reminded her. "Schools are always the same. There are lockers, students, books, and lots of homework, yeah?" Avalon smiled. "Nothing to worry so much about." She raised her eyebrows. "He really grounded you?"

"Yep." Avalon popped the 'p' at the end of the word. Then she tilted her head in thought, glancing towards the ceiling. "I didn't think being grounded was so bad. But the funniest thing, I reckon, is that he's actually managed to go and ground me underwater."

She and Bailey laughed.

"Once I'm off my grounding, we can do something together. But I don't want you sit here and wait around for me. Go find something to do. Or maybe go into town. The better we know how things work around here the better for us." She lowered her voice. "I know Dad said he wanted to get to know us more and talk about things but I reckon it'll take some time before that happens, yeah?"

"Yeah," Bailey agreed. "Especially with these new rangers needing as much help as they can get."

"Bay, you really need to learn how to be modest."

"Coming from you, Av, that's hysterical."

Bailey smiled and stood up from her bed. She leaned over her sister, being careful not to bash her in the head due to their tight quarters, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I know you're as mad as I am at him, but you really need to lighten up sometimes."

Avalon leveled her gaze to her sister and smirked. "Coming from you, Bay, that's hysterical." She waved her hand. "Get out of here."

"I'm going. Try not to get too bored, Av. I don't want to come back with our room engulfed in flames." Bailey took her wallet and phone, sticking them in her purse before she left their room." Bailey closed the behind her and took in a deep breath. Other than the dull pain in her ears, still getting used to living underwater, Bailey suddenly felt a little better.

She hadn't realized how the size of the room really was starting to get to her. It was going to take some time getting used to but the feeling of being seconds away from a panic attack didn't do much for her. Bailey started to wander the halls of the AquaBase. She hadn't been there long enough to know where everything was, but at least she knew how to get to her father's office. Once she got there, then she could ask the best way to get into the city.

 _Chances are he's going to give me some sort of a secret service escort_ , Bailey thought. Those guys that had tagged along with them while recruiting the rest of the rangers were scary enough. And if mum told him anything about what we've been up to since he dropped us off in Angel Grove we'd probably be watched the whole time. Especially now that Av's managed to anger him a little.

Bailey made it halfway to Captain Mitchell's office before she ran into Chad, who looked as confused as she did. "You wouldn't happen to know where the automobile hangar is do you?"

"Somewhere around here I think," Bailey replied. "Why?"

"I've got to get back to the Aqua Park and finish up my shift," he explained. "I didn't expect to be taken away from by job by these guys. I have some of the whales and dolphins that I still need to feed and finish with their round of training."

"Oh, I was heading into town anyway. Do you think you could take me?" Bailey asked. "We can find where they keep the cars together."

"Only if you don't mind helping me get my work done, then sure," Chad agreed. Bailey smiled and nodded. She slung her purse around her chest and shoved her hands into the pockets of her jeans as they went. She and Chad looked through different rooms as they wandered around the AquaBase, finding many different rooms of uniformed officers and other officials busy with their work.

Finally, they found the hangar that held all the vehicles of all he residents in the AquaBase and the Rescue Rover. Chad climbed into the driver's seat while Bailey got into the passenger seat. He drove them out of the hangar and up onto the road that led to Marina Bay. Bailey smiled, feeling the warm salty air blow around her. It reminded her of Angel Grove in that aspect, how it was sunny and warm nearly the entire year.

But she had missed the beach. It was the one thing Mariner Bay had that Angel Grove didn't. Even if she didn't learn to love the city as much as Angel Grove, which turned to be her second home after some time, there was something that'd keep her at least interested.

"So how long have you been working at the Aqua Park?" Bailey called over the wind.

"For a little while now," Chad called back. "I train the dolphins and the whales and feed all of the aquatic life. Sometimes I help run the shows that the audience goes to see. You know, like Shamu in Sea World.

"Wow! Really?"

"Yeah, there's even this one move that Krill and I do that everyone loves. Krill is a Killer Whale, where I go underwater and swim around with him, then he propels me out of the water with his nose and I go flying through the air and back into the water." Chad smiled to himself. "The audience gets pretty wet. So if you don't want that, you need to sit in the back part of the bleachers." He winked at her. "But I haven't seen anyone that didn't want to be in the front row yet."

"Have there been any fights?"

"Between the fish?"

Bailey laughed. "No, between those trying to get to the front."

Chad laughed, too. "Not any that I've seen. But that doesn't mean it hasn't happened. It's the most popular attraction in the park."

 _He needs to learn how to be more modest_ , Bailey thought. She smiled to herself, hearing Avalon's reprimand that she had given her earlier. Settling back into her seat, Bailey watched as the city blocks whizzed by. For a moment, Bailey caught a glimpse of her high school. It was hard to believe she would be going to Mariner Bay High School rather than Angel Grove High as she expected. She had been excited to go to Angel Grove High after seeing all her friends attend.

She'd heard about Ms. Appleby and Mr. Kaplan and all the classes, clubs, and sports teams they could join. That was all she wanted out of a high school experience. And now she was going to start all over again.

Chad pulled up at the Aqua Park and parked the car. Bailey eagerly climbed out and followed him into the park. He walked to the Whale and Dolphin section and went through a door at the back of the aquarium. Bailey let out a light gasp as she looked around. It appeared as sterile as the technology lab in the AquaBase…and the Command Center. And yet the fishy smell of their food was a lot more pungent than she thought it'd be.

Her nose wrinkled and Chad laughed at the expression on her face. "Yeah, it takes some time to get used to."

"I don't think I ever will, this stuff is strong." Bailey waved a hand in front of her face. "But I reckon you lot worked here long enough for it to not be a problem."

"Like I said, you get used to it." Chad picked up two buckets of food and nodded for Bailey to follow her back out to the exhibit. They walked up to a large pool that had an inflated ball floating on top. Stepping up to the edge of the water, Chad put the buckets down and lifted a whistle, blowing it in three sharp bursts.

Bailey looked around at the water, seeing it ripple. Then she picked up the sleek movement through the water and watched as a dolphin poked its head up above water and clicked at her. Then a second and third one appeared, clicking happily as they swam close. Chad pulled on a pair of gloves then plunged his hands into the buckets of food, tossing chunks out into the water.

The dolphins swam about, sucking down as much food as they could before clicking again. Chad did this a few times before setting the buckets aside and sitting on the edge of the pool, bringing his knees to his chest. A comfortable silence moved between the two of them as they sat by the waterside. Bailey watched the dolphins swim laps around the pool before one went over to the ball that floated across the top of the water.

Using its nose, the dolphin flicked the ball up towards Bailey. She grabbed it and spun it in her hands. Water droplets flicked off the ball. The dolphins all started to squeak and squeal towards her, making Bailey's smile widen. She tossed it back towards them and the dolphins turned, racing after it. Then they grabbed the ball and came back to her. She did it a few more times, the dolphins skillfully playing fetch with her each time. Or, if it was the human's case, they played chase.

A wistful sigh escaped Bailey's lips. She couldn't remember the last time she was able to have fun while growing up. Her dad made sure she and Avalon worked a lot on their studies and education and did as many household chores to gain a sense of responsibility. It was Avalon who took her to the mall, to bookstores, to the beach, to other shops and playgrounds and parties so that she had a social life and had some fun.

All her memories were of Avalon and their mother doing those fun things with her, not her father. Captain Mitchell was the one who worked all the time and when he returned home, he continued working. If he wasn't in his office at the house he was at his office at work and he brought it home with him, his attitude wearing off on Bailey to the point that she wouldn't speak to her father much unless he spoke to her first.

 _And now he wants us here to…I guess I'm not really sure._ Bailey frowned.

The sound of Chad taking in a deep breath caught her attention and Bailey looked over to find his eyes closed and palms pressed together. She'd been around Trini—and by extension, Jason—long enough to know he was meditating. But she hadn't seen so many people do it. I wonder what kind of martial arts he studies.

"I train under Master Tomashiro, in karate," he explained, without opening his eyes. "He says mediation is a really important part of knowing where your body, your mind, and your spirit combine with the Earth."

"My friend used to say that all the time."

"You must miss him."

"Her." Then Bailey paused. "How could you tell?"

Chad's eyelids fluttered but he didn't open his eye. "There was a wistfulness to your tone. I'll admit, I sensed it when I ran into you earlier today. I felt there was some sort of sadness about you. Even when you had come to see me when we were first recruited for this ranger business I felt it." He opened his eyes. "If I may ask, you were a former ranger. Were you brought here to only work on the technology? Wouldn't it be more helpful if, like your sister, you were fighting alongside us?"

Bailey nodded. Then she shrugged. She had no idea what to think. "I'm not quite sure. My dad said he wanted to spend some more time with us. But then he said he wants me to work with Miss. Fairweather. I have just as much experience of being a ranger than Av does. So, I don't know why I'm not being used. Just…you don't ever want to cross him, mate. If he tells you to do something, you do it, yeah?"

"I don't know, I think his two henchmen are scarier." Chad smiled, finally opened his eyes. "If those guys who were sitting on the helicopter with us were anything. I thought they were hitmen or something."

Bailey giggled. Then her laughter turned to a shriek when the dolphin swam by and flipped its tail, spraying her with water. She laughed for a few moments before realizing that Chad wasn't laughing along with her. As a matter of fact, he had rolled to his feet and was taking on a swarm of Batlings that had appeared behind them.

Whipping around, Bailey ducked out of the way of a Batling that tried to grab onto her arms. She flipped to her feet and sank into a familiar fighting stance that Tommy had taught her. Her muscles fired up, ready to go. She could feel it all coming back to her. Maybe she could prove to her father she deserved to be out there just as much as the others.

* * *

 **A/N:** Yes, this story if off hiatus. I hope this chapter was good for it to come back. Pacing will pick up after the wait. Thanks you guys!

Thanks to **Adela, Ashley, TerraHart, and lizziestrong** for reviewing the first two chapters of the story.

 **~Av**


	7. Realization

**.:06:.**

 _Realization_

* * *

Bailey tied her hair into a ponytail and made sure her purple t-shirt tucked into her black track pants. She lifted her foot and tied the laces on her boots. A quick look at her watch made her grimace. She was late. Captain Mitchell hated tardiness. Bailey raced from her bed chamber. She turned to the mirror. Everything was in place. Bailey raced to Kelsey's and Dana's room.

She picked up tactical information from Miss. Fairweather along the way then knocked. She was met with a few seconds of silence and leaned forward, listening to the laughter that came from inside. She opened the door and stuck her head inside, smiling when she saw the rangers smiling and laughing with each other. They became friends so much faster than she thought they'd be. Their backgrounds were so different from each other, but even she knew that something like being a ranger made it easier for those to find common ground.

Though there were still cracks she saw within them from her own observations. There had been too many times that their cleaning habits got on each other's nerves as well as the bathroom schedules. But at least on the field they could work together.

"So my parents always asked me if I'm crazy whenever I talk about the things I'm going to do," Kelsey was saying as Bailey opened the door. "There was rock climbing, bungee jumping, sky diving…and then there big one, deep sea diving." She flopped down on the bed next to Dana, leaning her head on her shoulder. "I think that was the time that my family finally realized there was nothing they could do to stop me."

"Considering how trigger happy you've become around here, I think we figured that out a while ago," Chad teased. He, Carter, and Joel sat on the opposite bed in the room, all laughing at Chad's comment while Kelsey swatted at his knee.

"Hey, I'm not that bad. The fire power on those things is a lot more intense than I thought they'd be."

"Was that before or after you were told time and time against that you needed to be careful?" Carter asked.

"Yeah, yeah. You can't tell me that none of you guys have done anything stupid."

Joel bobbed his head back and forth. "Maybe not as stupid. But does making your own set of wings and jumping out of a second story window count?"

"Considering how many broken bones, contusions, abrasions, and sprains I've had to deal with form kids doing stuff they thought wasn't stupid, yes, I'd say it counts," Carter said. He flicked his hair from his before leaning down to make sure his shoes were properly tied. "If I never go one day without a little kid doing something to get themselves hurt, it'll be too soon."

"You're telling me that you've never done anything crazy?" Dana asked. "Nothing that made you wonder what could've happened? Nothing…"

"No," Carter said firmly. The light was gone from his eyes. He dropped his feet to the ground and crossed his arms. "I don't particularly like to live outside of the box."

"Yyeah, I think we kind of got that," Joel commented. He stood up straight and brought a hand to his forehead, pressing his fingers into the skin. "I've never met someone more disciplined in my entire life. I honestly wonder how you even have time to breath because you're wound up so tight."

"Like this." Carter made a show of his chest swelling in and out as he breathed, making the rest of the rangers start laughing again.

Bailey twisted her mouth to the side, suddenly realizing how out of place she was feeling. She had just gone from a team of rangers who were close to her age to one that was filled with adults. Adults that looked at her like she was a little kid whenever she was around. Who looked at her like she didn't belong when she was detailing them on their weapons and zords. It was different and she wasn't quite sure she liked that kind of different.

"Hi guys," she finally greeted them, knocking on the door frame to the room. "It's time for you to go out and do some training. Captain Mitchell is waiting for you at the obstacle course."

"Alright, let's go." Carter got up from the bed and led the rangers out of the room. Bailey followed them, tucking her clipboard close to her chest. She followed them all the way to the obstacle course and stood by her father as the rangers moved to stand next to Avalon, who was dressed in a orange t-shirt, black pants, and boots, and a sullen expression on her face.

Captain Mitchell hardly spared his daughters a glance as they arrived. Bailey twisted her mouth to the side, glancing towards the ground as she waited to take down the times of each of the rangers. Captain Mitchell lifted his hand in a salute and the rangers did the same, with Avalon and Bailey moving a second slower, looking uncomfortable as they did so.

The learning curve was something Bailey struggled with. For the first time, leaning something was harder than she thought it would be. She didn't have an eidetic—or photographic—memory but her long-term memory was great. Coming into a different culture, however, was not. Going from Australia to America all those years ago was a culture shock, but going into what could equate to military life was even harder.

Carter then shouted something that made the rangers fall in line before saluting back to him. That made Bailey's eyes widen even further. Still, she paid close attention and watched as Captain Mitchell started up the obstacle course the rangers were to go through. While Joel and Chad raced through a time focused event with tire runs and crawls under cargo nets, Kelsey and Dana went through a simulation of rescuing a baby from a fire along with giving it CPR at the end. Carter's and Avalon's tests were a little different; Carter was to run through the training building shooting cardboard cutouts of monsters—like the ones that they've been experiencing since first becoming rangers. Avalon, on the other hand, had her sharpshooting skills tested with quick firing targets.

Bailey dutifully scribbled down all the times that Captain Mitchell spat out to her; 1 minute 30 seconds for Joel and Chad, who seemed to have pushed themselves to the limit from the way they bent over when finished. Almost as if the air had been knocked out of them. 2 minutes for Kelsey and Dana who celebrated their improvement in time with a high-five. A perfect score for Avalon, which even Captain Mitchell seemed surprised with and Avalon brushed off with a noncommittal shrug when complemented on it. And 52 seconds, a new course record, for Carter's speed-run through the training facility.

And Bailey couldn't help the pang of jealousy? Resentment? as she watched all of them work with each other to get their assignments done. And all she was doing was keeping down time and score and it didn't look like Captain Mitchell wanted her to do anything else. She'd look at him every now and then, trying to figure out from the stony expression on his face what else it was that he wanted. He wouldn't say anything other than ask to confirm that she'd gotten the scores.

Yes, she did.

It wasn't rocket science to write things down. It wasn't rocket science to stand back and watch as people ran around a training facility, and yet he thought the only thing she was good for was creation of weapons and zords and writing things down. He hadn't said a word to her other than the conversation where he confided that Billy had aided him in the creation of the powers in general. What else was it that she was being kept in the dark about?

"Carter!" Hearing Captain Mitchell's sharp voice, Bailey looked up along with the other rangers, Carter's celebration of the new course record cut short. Seeing the expression on her father's face, Bailey exchanged a glance with Avalon and they made similar expressions.

Whatever it was, Carter was in trouble and it wasn't good when you were in trouble with the Captain. Nevertheless, Carter turned to Captain Mitchell with a bemused smile. He'd been congratulated not seconds before but now… "Sir?" He asked.

Captain Mitchell turned his stony expression to Carter. Bailey grimaced even further. She'd been on the receiving end of the look one too many times. "You may have had the fastest time, but you got the lowest score."

"What?" Carter's eyes widened seconds before the trained expression returned to his face. One that was nothing short of control. Out of all the rangers, Bailey had seen that Carter was the one that didn't let himself go every often. He was very by the book, thought rules meant structure, and did nothing more than follow a strict routine every day. Go to the firehouse in the morning to continue his duties there, then return to the AquaBase so that he'd fulfill his ranger duties.

On his days off from the firehouse, he was in the AquaBase, training as much as time would allow him. Being told that he was anything less than perfect seemed to rattle him more than he'd like to let on.

"The lowest score?" Carter repeated. He blinked rapidly, lowering his gaze. The other rangers slowly stopped their celebration, watching in slight discomfort. They couldn't leave, they hadn't been dismissed, and yet it was rude to stay. "I don't understand. How could I have gotten the lowest score, I hit every target."

Anger flashed through Captain Mitchell's eyes. "Hitting every target doesn't make a difference when you're reckless in all other areas of the exercise. I sent you in there to case your surroundings and use your head to make the right decisions in that moment in time. You've failed in that aspect because you're so preoccupied in making sure you're the best and you're the fastest." Carter started to speak again, but Captain Mitchell held up his hand, effectively cutting him off. "None of this means anything if you don't take the time to make the right choice. The obvious one isn't always the right one and people can get hurt if you don't pay attention." He reached out and poked Carter in the forehead. "You have to take time to use this, before you can ever use a blaster."

Captain Mitchell made sure to continue standing by Carter for a few seconds, to drive the point home. Carter lowered his chin, nodding almost imperceptibly, and Captain Mitchell nodded back. He stepped around Carter and walked back to the other rangers, who waited quietly. "We'll debrief and return to the AquaBase," he said. "For now, get some rest."

"Aye aye." Joel raised his hand to his forehead in a salute. Captain Mitchell gave him a withering look and Joel quickly brought his hand back down, almost shaking as he did so. "…Captain," he said slowly, the smile lowering from his face. He managed a small, nervous chuckle and took a step back. "I was just…I was just kidding," he said.

Captain Mitchell cast him one last look before walking over to Bailey. "Please make sure that the information you recorded today is typed up and on my desk within an hour of our return to the AquaBase."

"Sure," Bailey said. She recapped her pen and turned back to Captain Mitchell. "Hey, Dad?" She reddened, realizing her mistake when Captain Mitchell gave her a stern look, his eyebrows lowering. "I mean, Captain Mitchell, don't you think you were a little hard on Carter? He really did try his best and the bloke did get the course record."

Captain Mitchell brought his hands behind his back in a military stance. He let out a quiet sigh, lifted his chin to look his youngest daughter in the eye. "You know as well as I do the kind of training that goes into being a ranger."

Bailey looked back at him for a minute. "We never trained like we were going into the army. Like we were going to—"

"—War?" Captain Mitchell interrupted. "Bailey, every fight with a monster that comes to Earth is a battle in a war. A long battle that's been fought long before you and your friends in Angel Grove got their powers. And until every evil intergalactic being is taken down, it's not going to end." He sniffed once more. "My training may be difficult to adjust to, but I believe it is the best interested of this team for them to be in top shape."

She nodded and looked away. There was no point in arguing. He made up his mind and that was that.

"Please pick up all of the equipment before returning to the AquaBase." Bailey nodded again. She looked up when Captain Mitchell turned and called out to Avalon, "You did a good job today. Your sharpshooting skills are top-notch."

Avalon lifted a hand in acknowledgement of the complement but didn't respond. Bailey felt for her. How would people react if she explained the truth behind it? Plus, she was sure their father knew about her past with the Vipers by that point. He certainly did his homework on everyone, why would he let that slip through the cracks?

While the rangers went back to the Rescue Ranger to get it ready to return to the AquaBase, Bailey walked around the training facility, taking down everything that had been used. She looked over the paintball shots that Carter had punched into the cardboard cutouts of monsters. A wistful feeling washed over her. Hearing a crunching sound behind her, Bailey turned to see Carter aiding her in picking up some of the other monsters, silently folding them.

"You don't have to help," She said. It was a futile comment. Carter was the first one to every training session and the last one to leave. He set things up and cleaned them up. No matter how many times she said 'you don't have to help' he'd do it anyway.

"This time I feel like I have to," Carter said. "To get an idea…of what Captain Mitchell meant."

"Well, my dad doesn't really say things unless he means them," Bailey said slowly.

"I know," Carter agreed.

He didn't say anything after that. And Bailey knew the reason why. Carter saw a lot of himself in Captain Mitchell. He'd been a ranger for only a few weeks but he worked harder than everyone else. He worked to be the best. Almost to a fault. Bailey could see that his discipline through being a firefighter certainly played into it more than he admitted or even realized.

It was in his mannerisms, the certain way he did things. The way he kept his bed chamber completely neat, mentioning to Joel and Chad if they didn't keep theirs the same way. He cleaned his dishes after every use, putting them back in the cabinet rather than leaving them to soak in the sink. He did his chores—though Captain Mitchell was careful not to call them chores—as soon as they were assigned and made sure others did theirs as well.

All in all, Carter was reliable and there was nothing wrong with that. Though Bailey had heard whisperings from the other rangers that they'd wished he'd relax every now and then.

Bailey worked alongside him in silence for a while before taking the cardboard cutouts from him. She looked him in the eye and asked him a question she'd been curious about since she met him. "Carter, why did you become a firefighter?"

Carter looked at her for a moment. He gave a small smile. "I wasn't expecting that," he said.

"Is it a long story?" Bailey pressed.

"No, it's a short one. But…very poignant in my life."

Then Bailey was embarrassed. "I hit a nerve, mate, I'm sorry. I reckon I didn't think it was a big deal…I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop this morning. I was coming by to tell you guys we had to leave and-"

"No, Bailey, it's okay," Carter said quickly. He scratched the back of his neck. "Uh, there's not much to the story. Just…I've seen what firefighters can do, how they constantly risk their lives to save people." He hesitated. "I've always had a fascination with them, I guess. Wanting to know what it was that pushed them to that limit, to want to help people that badly. Not for the glory, but for the protection of life. It's so fragile and there's so much that can be done to help." He crossed his arms. "I could've gone any route to help someone but…firefighting was something that's always been in my life."

"Was your mother or father a firefighter, too?" Bailey asked.

"No, they weren't. But they weren't surprised when I told them what I wanted to do with my life. I think they saw it coming long before I got to the point of testing."

Bailey nodded and they finished in silence. She knew exactly how he felt. Nothing was better than the feeling of knowing you were helping someone in some way. Knowing their life was in your hands and that you were protecting it to the best of your ability. The glory wasn't a part of it, never had been. But being in a position where you gave your life up for others and then going back to what was considered 'normal' was the hardest culture shock.

 _If you're not part of it, you wouldn't understand,_ Bailey thought. It was then she realized she'd had made a mistake.

She wanted to be a ranger again.

* * *

Diablico drummed his fingertips on the cave wall beside him. Little rocks fell to the ground, becoming larger and larger as he tapped harder. Soon he was punching the wall beside him, making the rocks fall harder, faster. Threatening to make the wall cave in on him as he did so.

He looked over at Vypra, as she turned and gave him an incredulous look. She held Baby Impus in her arms, gently rocking him. It was obvious his movements were threatening to wake him up. Diabolico removed his hand from the wall and turned to face Vypra completely.

"Queen Banshira would be unhappy if she returns to the city and it's still standing," Diabolico reminded her. "I didn't store my power up long enough to travel to Angel Grove for this. Do you know how long it took for me to regain that strength once more?"

Vypra continued to look at him with narrowed eyes. Finally, she returned Impus to his crib. Her bat wings gently fluttered behind her as she did so. "I don't seem to remember that being part of Queen Banshira's plan," she said. "You going to Angel Grove then."

"Queen Banshira and Lord Zedd don't always communicate with those beneath them," Diabolico growled. "You wouldn't understand."

"I've seen nothing more than you complain when the rangers screw up our plans," Vypra said. "And yet you haven't told me anything about Queen Banshira's plan and what it means to you. What are you hiding Diabolico?"

Diabolico turned his back on her. "Just a means to destroy the city and put it back in Queen Banshira's control."

Vypra pursed her lips. She wasn't going to get an answer out of Diabolico that easily. "If you want to destroy a city," she said finally, eyes flashing. "You do it from the ground up."

* * *

 **A/N:** Sorry for the delay with updates on this story. I was focusing on I'm Home and New Beginning a little bit more. Also, the story does get more lighthearted as things go on, it's not always so angsty and dramatic. Now that we've gotten into Bailey's real thoughts, things are going to have a lighter feel. Plus, chapters will get longer.

Here's a quick question, do you like that this is mostly from Bailey's POV or would you rather it be half hers and half another ranger's like the Avalon series was?

Thanks to **Adela, Ashley, TerraHart, and lizziestrong** for reviewing the first two chapters of the story.

 **~Av**


	8. Trial By Fire

**.:07:.**

 _Trial By Fire_

* * *

An Earthquake rocked the AquaBase, immediately sending the workers to the ground in cover. After a quick reading of the computer program that monitored seismic activity across the city, it was deduced the tremors weren't, in fact, being created by an earthquake but by a monster that was wreaking havoc in the downtown district of Mariner Bay. Footage from the event—taken from nearby security cameras strategically placed in an adjoining parking garage.

Captain Mitchell immediately gave the order for the rangers to be dispatched to the source of the destruction while Bailey grabbed a headset and stood by her father's side to give them advice while they fought.

At a rapid pace, the rangers climbed into the Rescue Rover and shot out form the AquaBase with Avalon following behind them on her Turbo motorcycle. They raced to the scene of the destruction, finding Batlings hammering large nails into the rocky floor. Carter nodded to the others, giving them the signal to start their morph.

"Shift into Turbo!" Avalon called. "Wild Fire, Turbo Power!"

"Lightspeed! Rescue!" Carter, Dana, Kelsey, Joel, and Chad called.

They morphed into their suits and raced out to the Batlings that gathered around their spikes. They looked up and scattered backwards towards a woman who stood above them on a balcony, watching them and barking orders. She smiled when she saw the rangers arrive to the fight.

"Well, it's finally nice to meet you, rangers," Vypra said with a small smile. She placed a hand to her chest, her bat-like wings gently fluttering behind her, almost as if they were winking at the rangers. "I'm Vypra. The one who's going to destroy you! Batlings attack!"

Her small army of Batlings raced forward under their new command to fight the rangers. They pulled out their weapons and split up to face the rangers individually. Chad showed off his martial arts skills with quick footwork that knocked down a few Batlings the seconds they came close. Dana used her blaster to keep them at a good length away from her. Kelsey grabbed onto a nearby chain to swing her around, knocking down Batlings like dominoes. Joel, living up to his Sky Cowboy moniker, leapt off small ledges and over cars, blasting the Batlings in mid-air as he did so.

"Turbo Wild Hammer!" Avalon summoned her turbo weapon and, swinging it like a baseball bat, made quick work of the Batlings that came near her, sending them flying.

Carter started to take on the Batlings that came his way but Bailey quickly moved the microphone of her headset down to her mouth. "Carter, let the others handle the Batlings," she said quickly. "You need to take own Vypra."

Carter hesitated for a second. "Those aren't our orders," he relayed.

Bailey bit her lip. She knew what he truly meant. It wasn't their order to listen to her. Captain Mitchell was the one who made the decisions. Bailey looked at her father out of the corner of her eye, feeling her face enflame. He looked down at the monitor in front of them but didn't say anything to dissuade or persuade her. He simply watched.

Bailey took in a deep breath and made her decision. "Do it," she said. "You need to take down their leader before you can stop their foot soldiers. Trust me, mate, there's always more where that initial wave comes from."

"You got it," Carter said.

He raced forward and surprised Vypra with a kick to the side of the head. Her head whipped to the side and she stuck out her tongue, licking away the blood that trickled down from beside her lip. With her attention diverted, Carter spun around and kicked her in the hand. She dropped her sword and reacted with slashing her nails across the front of his suit. Then she turned and kicked him hard in the stomach. Carter stumbled back, giving Vypra the chance to pick up her sword and fly from the area, her wings quickly propelling her across the floor of the parking garage and up the stairs to the next level.

Carter raced after her. When he turned the corner, he received a nasty shock straight ton from Vypra's energy blast that raced up the front of her sword. He worked himself back to his feet and glanced over his shoulder. Innocent civilians cowered in fear behind them, screaming and running behind cars, abandoning their shopping carts.

"That's enough, Vypra!" Carter called to the monster. She glared back at him, hissing her displeasure. Her fangs gleamed in the sunlight, eyes narrowing as she faced the red ranger. There weren't many places for her to go. But there was plenty for her to do.

Bailey held her breath, watching the fight unfold in front of her. She clenched her hands into fists, wincing each time Vypra sent out another wave of energy from her sword, the bright blue hue shimmering against the silvery blade and the otherwise dingy parking garage. Her eyes shifted back and forth, watching the fight in front of her. _C'mon, mate,_ she thought. _You can do this._

Finally, Carter got the upper hand and, like an armed police officer, raised his blaster and pointed it at Vypra, backing her into a corner. "Drop it, Vypra," he declared, taking small steps towards her. "It's all over."

Vypra glared back at him, hissing once more. She kept her sword up in front of her, backing away from Carter with as many even steps as he took towards her. One by one until her back was against the wall. She pointed the sword at Carter's heart and started to charge up another attack. Then something caught her eye and she grinned evilly.

"Take this instead," she declared and shot her blast towards the floor. This time the floor erupted into flames, making Carter lift his hand and back away from the sudden, intense heat, giving Vypra the time to teleport herself back to safety.

Screams reaching his ears, Carter turned and saw those that had been paralyzed with fear from Vypra's attack were now in the way of the ceiling that started to crack and shake around them. Carter started towards them, but stopped when Captain Mitchell barked, "Leave them, put the fire out first!"

"What?" Bailey and Carter gasped at the same time. Bailey turned to her father, her eyebrows coming together. "Captain, the ceiling's coming down."

"Sir, I can't put out the fire," Carter agreed. "These people need my help."

"Carter, I gave you an order and I expect you to follow it," Captain Mitchell said firmly. "Put out that fire!"

Carter continued to hesitate for a long moment, obviously torn between the decision. Then he turned towards the fire and pointed his blaster at it. He quickly changed the function with a few twists of the handle, and sprayed water onto the fire. All the while, the ceiling continued to crack and buckle before it fell down onto the cowering crowd below.

Bailey gasped in surprise and horror, backing away from the screen in front of her. She pulled her headset form her ears and held it down around her neck. No. Those poor, innocent people. She couldn't' stand to hear their moans of pain but the screen in front of her immediately projected their twisted up expressions. The blood that trickled down the side of one man's hand, and the pained one on the little boy whose mother held her tightly against her chest as she screamed in emotional pain, seeing her little boy was injured.

And her father had been the one to determine that call.

Bailey, eyes filled with confusion, turned to her father. He looked back at her with a stern expression. One that she'd seen numerous times before. One that showed he meant the decision he made and no amount of protest would have him change it. Bailey shook her head. Now she knew why Avalon was so hesitant to come back to meet their father again. Why she was making it so hard for him to break down her walls of suspicion. And Bailey had refused to see it, hoping there was something still within him that was still their father and not just Captain Mitchell.

He was a monster.

"How could you do that?" She whispered.

"In moments of high tension like this, there need to be tough decisions made," Captain Mitchell defended himself.

"Those people got hurt!"

"I would make that decision again if I had to," Captain Mitchell insisted. He continued to stand in his military, no-nonsense stance, hands behind his back, no emotion on his face, in his eyes. "I made an order, I expect you all to follow it."

Bailey lowered her eyebrows. She removed her headset from around her neck and placed them on the control panel in front of her. Everything around her suddenly felt cold and metallic, not warm and inviting as the Command Center and Power Chamber had been. "Would you have done the same thing?" She asked. "With me and Av?" Captain Mitchell blinked, his mustache twitching as he tried to make sense of what she was asking him. "If you went back and did it all again…would you have made the same decision with me and Av?"

She waited for her father to deny it, to confirm it, to do anything but stand in silence.

And he did.

He turned and walked away from her.

* * *

Carter made waves as he stormed through the AquaBase. Everyone that came in his line of sight immediately backed away. His normally handsome face was twisted up into an ugly snarl, eyes flashing with unbridled anger, a fire flickering in his eyes. He clenched his hands into fists, coming to a stop near Captain Mitchell's office door.

He needed to calm himself before saying anything. Just so that he didn't jump ahead and immediately barrage Captain Mitchell with what he truly believed. He at least had to try to be a little diplomatic. That was Carter's best quality, what had given him awards and friends over the years. The way he thought; the way he kept things as calm as possible, even when faced with someone who was fighting against his help. There were numerous times he had been at the scene of an accident and those that were running on adrenaline, or even drugs, tried to fight him and his help off. And Carter, despite growing angry, would continue to speak in a calm, stern tone until the situation was diffused.

It was part of his job. But this time, he couldn't fulfill that part of his job and people had gotten hurt. He couldn't stand it when people got hurt. Taking in a deep breath, Carter crossed the last few feet towards the door, waiting for it to slide open before he stormed into Captain Mitchell's office.

Captain Mitchell sat at his desk, running his pen over a form, all without a care in the world. That broke the last of Carter's resolve and he slapped his hands onto the top of Captain Mitchell's desk. "You told me to put out the fire! You were wrong!"

"I wasn't wrong," Captain Mitchell said calmly. Much too calmly.

"No!" Carter snapped. "I should've gotten those people to safety first!"

"And allowed yourself to get caught in the damage?" Captain Mitchell leaned back in his seat and narrowed his eyes at Carter. "Allowed something even worse to happen?"

"The only other thing that would've happened was my team would've come up behind me and put out those flames," Carter insisted.

"Your team was too far behind you to get there in time!" Captain Mitchell replied. Anger flashed through his eyes. He slowly pushed himself from his seat and drew himself up to his full height. He was a little shorter than Carter, but he still managed to visibly stand at a seven feet from his confidence alone. "What would've happened—"

"Nothing would've happened," Carter interrupted.

Captain Mitchell pressed his lips together, brought in a deep breath through his nose. "Carter, I need you to cool off before we can continue this conversation."

"Or what?"

"Or you'll jeopardize your place here at Operation Lightspeed."

The threat hung in the air. Carter heard it loud and clear. He studied Captain Mitchell's face for a long moment, trying to discern whether he was telling the truth with his threat. It doesn't matter, Carter reminded himself. He's wrong. Turning on his heel, Carter left Captain Mitchell's office and went to the break room where the rest of his team were decompression. How could they be sitting there, smiling like that?

Kelsey, who was laughing at something Joel said, turned to Carter when he entered the room. "Carter," she said, still laughing. "You have to hear this story. Joel said he—"

"Not now," Carter interrupted so gruffly that all smiles left the ranger's faces.

"What's the matter with you?" Joel asked, lifting an eyebrow. "You look like you just got a spanking or something." He stared to laugh again and Carter whirled on him.

"Can you do anything but joke?" He demanded. "Or is this all just a game to you?" His teammates stared back at him. "People got hurt today. All because I had to listen to Captain's boneheaded move."

Dana's blue eyes narrowed at the red ranger. "The Captain may make decisions you don't immediately understand, but you have to respect him."

"How can I respect someone who only cares about hurting other people?"

Dana bristled even further. She moved closer to Carter, looking him in the eye. Her own eyes turned icy, whether it was from Carter insulting him as her father or as their boss, he wasn't quite sure. "Captain Mitchell wouldn't work as hard as he does at what he does if he didn't care for the citizens of this city. There's more to him than you know and badmouthing him is not the correct way to go about your anger."

"What else is he supposed to do?" Avalon's voice brought her attention. The younger ranger had been sitting on a nearby couch, looking through a magazine while Bailey sat at her side, her knees pulled up to her chest on the couch. "As far as I'm concerned, it's the best way to get an answer out of him, yeah?"

"He needs to respect—"

"Captain Mitchell hasn't shown respect to any of us," Avalon interrupted. "He's only given orders and expected us to follow them. Then again, I reckon you would be used to that, Dana. He's done nothing but train you to follow in his footsteps since you were born."

"I'd be honored to follow in my father's footsteps," Dana said primly.

"At what cost?" Avalon got up from the couch and turned to face her. "Your own happiness?" Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "Or your own life?" She shrugged. "Maybe I should just be glad that he didn't go ahead and decide to revoke his parental rights to you, too. You wouldn't be able to last a day without doing his bidding, yeah?" With that, she left the break room.

Carter watched the exchange then looked at Dana, who closed her eyes as if something was plaguing her. There was something weird about their dynamic, he always knew that. They were supposed to be sisters but…they didn't look similar to each other nor were they, obviously, raised the same. And what was it about parental rights being changed?

His frustration came back. If anything, their small argument had proven his point. Captain Mitchell didn't know what he was doing and made bad decisions that they all blindly followed. How could you follow someone you didn't trust? That he didn't know?

It's easy, a voice came to Carter's head. When your life is at risk.

The memory came back to him almost immediately. How his parents' house had been on fire. He hadn't been much older than Bailey at the time, maybe a little bit younger. He could still feel the heat from the flames around him, still feel the smoke choking him as the seconds passed. He still remembered his terrified cries as he searched for his mother and fire amongst the blaze.

 _"Mom? Dad?" Carter sobbed. His tears streaked through the soot that lined his cheeks. Blindly, he patted the floor, trying to make his way through the living room. Was it still the living room? Everything was so dark? It had happened so fast. "Mom? Dad?"_

 _The smoke was too thick now, it swirled around Carter, choking him, making him cough harder. Carter continued to carefully, slowly crawl along the floor. But the smoke became too thick and he couldn't see very far in front of him. Fear seized him then, making him take in large gasps of smoke, which made him choke more, made him breathe in more. Everything started to close around him and Carter fell to the floor, hands outstretched in front of him._

 _He had to keep moving, but he couldn't…_

 _Then a pair of hands grabbed him and he felt himself pulled up into strong arms. Carter opened his eyes, squinting around the blaze and looked into a clouded mask that sat on the face of a nearby fireman. "Are you okay? Can you breathe?" The fireman asked._

 _Carter nodded._

 _"Okay, let's get you out of here."_

 _He started towards the door, but a cracking sound caught their attention. Carter looked up and screamed when he saw a beam falling from the ceiling. Quickly, the fireman hoisted Carter up and threw him clear of the wreckage before lifting his hands to catch the beam above him. Carter scrambled around, heart racing as he watched the fireman struggle to hold onto the beam, before another fireman lifted Carter and dragged him out of sight._

It was the reason he wanted to become a fireman. That man that had saved him stayed in the back of Carter's mind as he went through the process of becoming a firefighter, dedicating his whole life to it. He never knew the man's name, never saw his face, but never forgot about him, wanting to thank him one day. And now Carter had been in the same position and couldn't save anyone.

He shook his head.

What was the point?

"Carter," Chad said quietly, grabbing his leader's attention. "Maybe you should cool off for a while. We're all upset about what happened today but…it's not going to help if we have to go back into another battle and you're still tied to this."

Carter nodded, almost as if he hadn't heard Chad. Then he turned on his heel and left the breakroom. He had to go somewhere else, had to let off some steam, had to shoot something…shoot something? Something that Captain Mitchell had said to him earlier…

 _"Hitting every target doesn't make a difference when you're reckless in all other areas of the exercise. I sent you in there to case your surroundings and use your head to make the right decisions in that moment in time. You've failed in that aspect because you were so preoccupied in making sure you're the best and you're the fastest. None of this means anything if you don't take the time to make the right choice. The obvious one isn't always the right one and people can get hurt if you don't pay attention."_

Carter went to the training facility they had been practicing out of earlier. He looked around at the mess that had been cleared away, the carboard cutouts of monsters and enemies stacked to the side. Carter placed his hands on his hips.

"Okay, Carter," he muttered to himself. "What are you supposed to be seeing?"

Something out of the ordinary immediately caught his eye. A paintball blast from where he had been shooting that morning. There were a few shots on the wall, but most on the cardboard cut outs. Then something else caught his attention, something else he hadn't seen before. A blue canister. Eyebrows furrowing together, Carter walked closer to the canister and turned it over. He noticed the paintball splotch a second before he saw the word Flammable written on the side.

"An explosive?" He asked.

Crunching caught his attention and he turned around to find Bailey walking his way. She lifted her chin, pushing her glasses up her nose, and locked eyes with him. Then she turned her attention to the canister beside him and her eyebrows came together.

"I don't remember these being in the set up," she murmured.

"Neither do I," Carter agreed. The two looked at each other and Carter lifted his morpher. Bailey did the same and the two teleported to the site of their last encounter with Vypra and the Batlings. Carter immediately ran over to where he had put out the fire with Bailey hot on his heels. They studied the area and Carter immediately spotted another flammable canister.

"Gasoline?" Carter murmured.

"Oh no," Bailey groaned. She ran a hand through her hair and turned away. She let out a long breath, shoulders slumping as the truth hit her. "If you had helped those people—"

"—I wouldn't have put out the fire and this whole place could've gone up," Carter agreed.

"Sometimes the obvious choice is the wrong choice," Captain Mitchell said, coming up behind the two, dressed in his uniform and cap. His eyes shifted over Carter's face. "It's not easy being a leader. You have to make tough decisions and learn tough lessons every day." Then his eyes shifted to Bailey. "No matter how many times you've done it before, nothing ever happens the same way and you need to be prepared."

Carter shook his head. "But with this…I'm not sure I can be a ranger."

"I am," Captain Mitchell said firmly. "And I know you'll be a great one."

Carter's morpher blared with a signal his friends were in danger. He looked at it for a moment then back at Captain Mitchell and Bailey. He nodded towards the former ranger. "Looks like we both have a lot we need to work on," he said.

Bailey nodded back.

Carter turned on his heel and started to run, morphing as he did so. Then he teleported to where his friends' location, arriving Justin time to shoot a mallet out of a Batling's hands before it created another earthquake. Then he pulled out his blaster and pointed it at Vypra, who stood over his friends with her sword held high. "That's enough, Vypra!" He snarled.

"Red Ranger," Vypra said, slowly turning to face him. She held her sword overhead. "Good to see you again." Then she charged towards him, swinging her sword overhead. Carter ducked out of the way of the swing and ran by her, charging straight towards the spikes the Batlings were pounding into the ground, creating the eathquakes.

He threw it into the air and shot it with his Rescue Blaster, immediately destroying it. Vypra glared at the rangers before sending the Batlings out to attack them again. Carter led the charge in the attack against the Batlings and Vypra. They held on for a long while until there was another, even larger rumble that shot through the ground. This time, it was the rumbling of an even bigger monster they had to deal with. One that looked like a megazord sized troll.

Carter immediately brought up the call, "Rescuezords, mobilize!"

"Initiate Turbo Zord Power!" Avalon called, leaping into the cockpit of her zord. It grew in size and she grabbed the key twisting it counter clockwise. "Turbo up!" An orange light covered her motorcycle zord, which shifted formation into what resembled a tank, and a protective shield covered it.

The Lightspeed Megazord came together and immediately sent a barrages of punches straight into the face of the monster. It fell to the ground before grabbing onto the legs of the Megazord to pull itself back up.

"Lightspeed Ladder Arms," Chad declared. "Power Up."

The Lightspeed Megazord's arms extended until the zord was holding itself off the ground. It spun in a large circle, kicking the monster off its legs and sent it flying across the clearing. "Blaster grips, lock on! Lightspeed Megazord saber," Carter summoned the weapon. "Ignite!"

"Turbo Wild Fire, Blaster!" Avalon called.

The energy blasts from her zord combined with the power of a slash from the Lightspeed Megazord and smashed into the monster, immediately blowing it up with the abundance of power as soon as it pitched over and hit the ground.

"Good job, rangers," Carter said. "Let's get back to the base."

* * *

"Does anyone else feel like they want to do nothing but take a nap?' Joel asked, stretching his arms above his head as the rangers walked back to their sleeping quarters. "Those rights really took a lot out of me."

"I hope you're not too tired," Miss. Fairweather said, walking over to the group. She grasped the edge of her glasses and pulled them up her nose. "I need someone to help me test a new weapon I've been working on." A thing smile came to her lips when the rangers groaned. "Don't all jump at once. I need this to be done by tonight."

Joel's eyes widened. "So, this is something that you'll be working exclusively on? With no one else?"

Miss. Fairweather nodded.

"Then I'd be glad to volunteer," Joel said.

Dana raised an eyebrow. "I thought you were going to take a nap," she reminded him teasingly.

"What's a nap when you've got a weapon you need to test out?" Joel placed his hand on her shoulder and shook his head. "Honestly, Dana, where are your priorities?" Dana's mouth dropped open as Joel turned on his heel and followed Miss. Fairweather with a new pep in his step.

Chad folded his arms. "Well, at least we now know how to get him to do stuff around here instead of sneaking off all the time."

"You're right," Kelsey agreed. She leaned into Chad's side and lowered her voice. "How long do you think we could use it to our advantage before he catches on?" The two laughed and continued to their rooms.

Carter cleared his throat and caught Dana's arm. "I, uh, wanted to apologize for the way I spoke to you, today," he said. "It wasn't right and I shouldn't have spoken about Captain Mitchell like that. It doesn't always look like it but, he knows what he's talking about."

Eyes shifting suspiciously, Dana said, "I've been with him as long as I can remember and my father has always been that way. He takes his work very seriously and expects people to listen to him the first time." Then she nodded. "But, I can admit sometimes he can go a little too far. When I had a sleepover when I was younger, he taught all of my friends how to perfectly roll up their sleeping bags."

"I can't imagine that made you too popular."

"Not at all. If you think he's bad now…he's actually mellowed out a little bit." Dana turned to go to her room. "Oh, and I accept your apology."

Carter smiled and nodded.

Bailey smiled as she watched the exchange before ducking her head back into the break room. She took the plate of bread covered in butter and sprinkles—fairy bread—from her sister and took a grateful bite. Heaven. "Looks like things are going to work out around here, yeah?" She said helpfully.

"I don't know," Avalon said with a sigh. She licked sprinkles off her lips. "There's still a lot to get used to around here." Her nose wrinkled. "I thought I would've preferred dad leaving us alone compared to the guys being so happy and perky in Angel Grove, but I think I'm wrong."

Bailey giggled. "Never thought I'd hear you say that, Av."

"I said, I _think_ , Bay." Avalon dusted off her hands and the two left the breakroom.

"So I was thinking about what happened today," Bailey said quietly. "And how I was wrong about dad's decisions." Avalon made a low snorting sound but motioned for her sister to continue. "I get it now. How hard the decisions are to make. And…I guess I was a little mad at him because it reminded me of the way you made decisions for me when we first got to Angel Grove."

"Bay," Avalon started.

But Bailey continued. "I get it. Sometimes the obvious decisions aren't the best ones to make, yeah? You helped us and stuck to your guns about it. Like I did today. I realized that I'm a lot like you," Bailey said. She made a show of shuddering. "Which is a scary, yeah?"

Avalon smirked. "I reckon it's not that bad."

"It's not," Bailey agreed. She looped her arm through her sister's as they headed to their room. "It's really taught me a few things. Mostly that I need to take the time to remember that we're not with our old team anymore and things aren't going to work the same way they used to."

"In other words, you were grounded, too?" Avalon asked.

"Yep." Bailey popped the 'p' on her word.

The girls looked at each other and laughed.

* * *

 **A/N:** So I've come to a revelation recently (if you follow me on Twitter you know this) but over the last couple of years I've put WAY too much pressure on myself to have my stories updated at a certain time on a certain day and they be a certain length. I'm removing that pressure from myself. I'm updating this story/my stories when I get the chance and when I feel like it's ready to post. So chapters will fluctuate from shorter to longer ones, but on the plus side (I feel) they'll be updated more often unless something big comes up. Because without the added pressure it's much more fun.

Thank you all for being so patient and thank you all for your response to my question from last chapter. Here's another question, who do you think Bailey will be closer to; Carter, Dana, Kelsey, Joel, Chad, or Ryan?

Thanks to **Adela, SpecialK92, and Ashley** for reviewing the first two chapters of the story.

 **~Av**


	9. Trust Me

**.:08:.**

 **Trust Me**

* * *

Bailey tapped her pen against her notebook as she listened to her teacher drone on and on about whatever was supposed to be taught that day. She wasn't paying attention for two reasons; 1) She was bored. How many times was she taught something because she had to be taught it and it was something she didn't need to know. She was smart. She started to read early. Like, very early. So much so her parents couldn't keep up with her vast knowledge as it continued to grow. But she always kept her cool with other students, getting straight A's and 100s on everything with little effort but never wanted to move up a grade because she wanted to be normal. (Though that all flew out the window once she and Avalon moved to Angel Grove).

And 2) She didn't care. Which was very much unlike her. She was like Billy in the aspect that at the beginning she used a lot of fancy words and tried to prove that she knew what she was talking about and to be taken seriously. That quickly changed once she met the rangers from Angel Grove. They saw her as a person and not just as the 'smart girl'. She didn't have to try and make herself appear one way or the other, normal or smart, they saw that in her and they liked it. And they allowed her to be the little sister for the entire team; she and Tommy were super close, especially now that they were adopted by his parents, she and Billy worked in the Command Center together, Kimberly took her shopping, Trini included her on her projects, Jason helped Tommy train her in martial arts, and Zack taught her everything that was cool. With them around and being in the Command Center, she felt like she belonged.

In Mariner Bay, she was just short of nothing. The youngest, stuck to work in the weapons lab. None of the rangers seemed to know what to do with someone her age around them. Dana, who was their half-sister, didn't seem care of their familial relations and only blindly followed their father. Her father seemed to be more into being a leader than trying to be a father and if that was the case…What was the point of bringing us out here? We made more progress when we were here for Av's school trip.

When class ended, Bailey gathered her things together and left before any of her classmates could say anything to her. Not that she would even know what to say. She didn't have a lot of time of being a regular teenager and that was all she wanted before. Now that she knew she didn't want it, there were so many regrets coming to her. Maybe she could call Antonio and Isabella, Rocky's brother and sister who were closest to her age. They'd gotten along very well before she left. Other than Fred, who wasn't talking to her much anyway, she didn't have many friends.

Bailey made it back to her room in the Aquabase right when Avalon arrived. She appeared to be as annoyed as Bailey did, but more than likely for the fact they were still grounded than anything else. Avalon was taking college classes by that point, or at least should have been going. Bailey knew Avalon had a habit of using her own judgment and impulsiveness at the worst of times and as far as Bailey knew, she could've used her turbo powers and zord to get back to Angel Grove whenever she wanted.

"Hey Bay," Avalon greeted her sister with a bright smile. Bailey couldn't help but smile back. She was the only one Avalon allowed herself to be completely open around and she loved it. They had been on their own so long they really only had each other to rely on and seeing Avalon when she was just herself and happy, not constantly looking over her shoulder and holding other people at arm's length. "How was school today?"

"It was fine, I guess," Bailey said with a shrug. "School's school."

Avalon laughed, pulling her hair out of her ponytail and shook it over her shoulders. It was the most relaxed Bailey had seen her act before. "I think that's the first time I've ever heard you say that about school."

"It's…it's just Mariner Bay," Bailey said as if that explained everything.

"What about it?"

"It's not Angel Grove."

"Oh, you're feeling a little homesick?"

"Don't you?" Bailey sat back on her bed. She didn't need to ask, she knew Avalon was homesick. Knew she missed her friends. They moment they all went their separate ways, even going so far back as to when Jason, Trini, and Zack left the team so Rocky, Aisha, and Adam could take their places, she was upset by it. Now completely moving away when others were serving as rangers in Angel Grove? It couldn't be easy.

"Yeah, I miss everyone and everything but we're here for a reason," Bailey said. Now she was trying to convince _herself._ How funny. Avalon must've thought so, too, as she burst out laughing.

"So, how long do you think it'll take for dad to finally talk to us?" Avalon asked with a smirk, dark eyes flashing.

Bailey didn't respond.

She was wondering the exact same thing.

* * *

"Rangers," Captain Mitchell said later that afternoon during the briefing. "I need you to really pay attention." He pointed to the video screen that showed footage of two men handling a cell. "This fuel cell is topic secret and extremely powerful. Also remember, it's sensitive to high temperature, so you must keep it away from the heat, no matter what."

The rangers, Avalon, and Bailey all gasped and made sounds of wonder when a massive explosion appeared on screen, causing a mushroom cloud to shoot towards the sky. Captain Mitchell smiled and turned off the screen, his smile immediately fading as he faced the rangers. "You'll meet Dr. Hanson at the airport and he'll have it with him. Your job is to get it back here."

"Understood, sir," Carter said immediately as he stood up from his seat. The expression on his face was etched in the most serious expression he'd shown. Bailey glanced at him. He must've learned his lesson from the last time Captain Mitchell had a talk with him. There was no success in rushing and sometimes you had to think things through to be considered a success. Now he took everything even more seriously than he had before. "Nothing's going to happen to that cell." He nodded to the other rangers. "Let's go, guys."

They all got up and started to follow Carter out of the room, but Captain Mitchell called Dana back to him. "Dana! I have a different assignment for you."

Dana paused and, confused, glanced at Kelsey who hovered outside the door to the briefing room. Kelsey's eyebrows rose, silently asking what was going on but Dana shrugged in reply. She was even as clueless as Kelsey. Dana glanced at Carter, who stood a few inches past Kelsey and nodded for him to go. He nodded back before Dana turned on her heel an returned to her father.

"Alright," She said slowly. "What is it?"

"I asked an old friend of mine to stop by," Captain Mitchell said. He walked over to a pad of paper that sat on the end of the briefing table and started to write on it. "His eyesight's pretty bad. I want you to give him a ride."

Dana's jaw dropped. Give him a ride? The other rangers were going out to take on delivering the fuel cell and here she was being a chauffeur? She watched as Captain Mitchell finished writhing with a flourish and ripped off the sheet of paper, handing it over to Dana, who wordlessly took it. "Here's his address. He's waiting for you. I appreciate it."

With that, Captain Mitchell started to leave the room. Dana grasped the address in her hand, stared at it for a moment, then turned back around to watch her father's retreating back. Anger burst from her so suddenly she couldn't stop it. She hadn't felt so disrespected in her entire life. She did everything her father asked of her and now he was keeping her to be a messenger?

"Father," Dana said. Captain Mitchell turned to face her, eyebrows raised. Dana pressed her lips together rand looked at him with so much contempt she felt it in her bones. "With all due respect, call your friend a taxi!" She shook her head. "The other rangers need my help."

"The other rangers have Avalon to help them," Captain Mitchell said. He nodded towards her hand. "You have your assignment."

Dana paused for a moment. He didn't understand. She was a ranger. She was supposed to save the city, protect everyone who resided there. Did everything they could to keep more people from becoming victims. Like that little boy Carter consistently visited at the hospital after his injury in the parking garage collapse.

"Father, that fuel cell could—"

Captain Mitchell interrupted her once more. "—They have their assignments and you have yours."

"This isn't an assignment!: Dana snapped, matching her father's tone and intensity. Captain Mitchell's lips twitched, he clasped his hands together behind his back. Waited for her to finish. "This is babysitting. You can say you trust me, you can choose me to be the pink ranger…but in the end, all you see me as is your little girl." With that she turned on her heel and stormed from the room, using the other entrance to get away.

With her long, angry strides, she caught up with Avalon and Bailey quickly. The two looked at her curiously and Dana looked back at them. How much had they heard of their conversation? It was only a few seconds before Avalon gave a biting remark that showed Dana they had, indeed, heard the conversation.

"At least he sees you as his 'little girl'," she said to Bailey, as if Dana wasn't there. "The last time I heard that was…hm…never," Avalon said, pretending to think about it. Dana wasn't sure if it was her own anger that had her snap back or if it was the automatic defense of her father.

Either way she said, "You don't understand, Avalon."

Avalon turned on her heel and folded her arms. "I understand enough. As a matter of fact, I think I bloody understand more than you do." She gestured around the AquaBase. "You've lived this cushy life with him around your entire fucking life. While in Angel Grove we've had to live by ourselves, making our ends meet, wondering why a father would give up his rights to us. There's so much shit I had to do to make sure we could survive and he didn't care."

"He cared," Dana shot back. "Or else he wouldn't have tried to connect with you later."

"How long after you confronted him was that?" Avalon asked.

"Av," Bailey said in warning. Warning of what, really? Avalon was saying exactly what she wanted to say but didn't have the courage to. When was she finally going to have the courage to say what was on her mind and not have her big sister do it for her? When would she be strong enough?

Dana gritted her teeth. She was tired of this. Tired of being the one that had to keep up appearances and pretend that everything was okay. "He lied to me, too!" She snapped. "He lied about everything. Don't forget that just because of the life I've lived. I haven't had a chance to get past that either. Knowing he treated my mother so badly. There're many parts of his life that I wish he would tell me but I can't know about it because of clearance, because he cares more about his job than anything else. You're not the only one who's been treated unfairly. So stop acting like it."

With that, Dana went to do as she was told. Bailey followed along behind her for a few minutes only saying simply, "I have to go, too," when Dana glanced at her. Then she nodded. Dana understood.

It was their assignment.

* * *

With a sense of displeasure, Dana went to the address Captain Mitchell had given her. Nothing was worse than not following a direct order. Father or not, she would never be able to get away with it. Though there was a big part of her that wanted to stick it to him. To show him she was much more than being able to play chauffer to someone who probably should have an appointed driver all the time.

Now she understood why Avalon and Bailey rebelled so much. Captain Mitchell didn't know how to be father, he knew how to be a Captain and his ways of trying to keep the lines separate were just as bad as when he tried to blend them. Even growing up, Dana felt so much pressure on her to be the best in everything, to ace all of her classes and to have everything be perfect. Then her father was Captain Mitchell, he was never 'father'. Not even on the weekend.

Guilt rolled through Dana's stomach. All the same, she loved her father dearly and knew he took his job seriously. It was a stressful job, being the Captain of a high profile government facility that was tasked to keep the city safe. Not to mention being the sole person responsible if something were to happen to them. And what if something happened to his daughter…daughters? Would he be able to see them as anything more than fallen soldiers? Would it break him as much as it did when Ryan was…

Dana shook her head. She hadn't thought about Ryan in a long time. To her, he was nothing but a distant memory. A ghost almost. So much so that there were many moments she had thought he didn't exist which then drove her to pull out old photo albums to prove he really was there. Their father never spoke about him, and even when asked how many children he had, he'd say '3'. Ryan may as well be dead to all of them.

 _He's been dead for a long time,_ Dana thought.

Finally, she pulled up the address and climbed out of her car. She strode down a sketchy alley, even in the daylight it looked sinister, and knocked on the correct door. The she stood back, placing her hands in the pockets of her orange rescue jacket and waited for the door to open. Which it did with a flourish, nearly knocking her in the face, as a graying man in large glasses looked at her.

"Hi," Dana said slowly. "I'm Dana, are you—"

"Oh, Bill Mitchell's daughter!" The man reached out and grabbed onto Dana in a hug so tightly that Dana could only awkwardly hold her arms to her sides. "I'm Earl! Darn' tootin' glad to make your acquaintance!" He stood back and smiled up at Dana. "You're so much prettier in person. Just like your mother."

That made Dana's eyebrows rise in surprise. She hadn't thought of her mother in a long time. Nothing more than a passing thought. But now… "You knew my mother?" She breathed. She pictured her mother. There was no way she looked like her. Her mother was absolutely gorgeous and she…

Bailey frowned and turned away. Earl certainly wasn't going to say anything about her mother. He probably didn't even know she existed.

"Oh yes, I knew your mother and father very well," Early said. His big smile unflappable. "She'd be so proud if she could see you now. Just a minute." He disappeared back into his house and when he appeared once more, he was holding onto fishing gear. He handed a rod to Bailey and a net to Dana before taking a tackle box with him. There was a spring in his step as he said, "Let's get going while we still have time for the fish to bite."

Dana and Bailey gaped at each other. Dana was the first to find her voice and she said, "Wait a minute! You're telling me you and my father are going fishing?"

"Ah." Earl's smile was unflappable. "Jealous are you? Well, I'll make it up to you." He dug around in the pocket of his vest and produced a set of keys. With a grin, he jingled them around. "I'll let you drive ol' blue." He gestured towards the blue truck that sat nearby. Dana's upper lip curled but she moved to do as she was told. She was going to drive ol' blue to the harbor to take Earl fishing. It was her job and if it was assigned to her she was going to do it right.

Even if she had to do it with gritted teeth.

The drive started out uneventful, Ol' Blue's shocks bouncing up and down and squeaking was the only thing that filled the car. Earl hummed quietly beside her as they bounced along, a happy go lucky smile on his face. Didn't he realize how unfair this job was? Or was all he knew that he was going fishing? Did he know who she was, or what Captain Mitchell was doing? As far as she knew, the general public knew there were rangers but hadn't known their identities. It didn't seem like anything Captain Mitchell was trying to change.

"So, who are you?" Earl asked, turning to face Bailey who sat in the backseat, staring out the back window. She turned as he was spoken to and gave a pleasant smile. She was angry, but she wasn't rude. "I didn't know Bill to be inclined to hang out with those who are so young."

A light smile came to Bailey's lips. She couldn't imagine her father hanging out with those younger than him either. Her mother, maybe, but her father? Definitely not. "I'm his daughter," Bailey replied, suddenly realizing her thick her accent was in comparison to Dana's American one. She glanced at Dana. "Or, at least, one of them, yeah? I have a big sister, too. Her name's Avalon."

Earl's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Billy never told me he had any other children."

Bailey fell silent at that. She expected that answer. She knew in many ways she and Avalon were the darkest secret that Captain Mitchell kept. It wasn't anything that Bailey particularly liked herself. How many others were there that she had to figure out. But more importantly… _Is he always going to treat us like a bloody secret?_ That was the part that angered her the most. And Bailey rarely ever got angry.

"He didn't tell a lot of people," Dana replied under her breath.

She locked eyes on Bailey's in the mirror and Bailey immediately looked away. Dana sighed. If they were going to have any sort of relationship, it had to be made now. They couldn't keep fighting with each other and trying to see who had the worse life. They all had been affected by their father's actions and now they had to deal with it.

Thankfully, the silence of the car was broken by Carter's voice coming through Dana's morpher and Bailey's communication device. If there was any doubt they were rangers or affiliated with it, Early now knew who they were. Carter sounded panicked and out of breath as he said, "Dana, we need your help! And fast!"

"I'm on my way," Dana replied before pulling sharply on the steering wheel of the car.

It shot to the side, pressing Dana, Bailey, and Earl into their seats at the sudden influx of speed. Bailey quickly reached out and grabbed onto whatever was there for her to hold onto. The last thing she was going to do was get thrown from a vehicle from Dana's kamikaze driving. Especially since she'd already survived multiple times with Tommy driving.

And he as trying to be a racecar driver.

"Hurry!" Carter cried after a few moments.

Then Captain Mitchell's voice came through the speaker. "Negative, Dana. Keep going to the AquaBase."

Dana shook her head. Her voice quivered with indecisiveness of trying to be respectful as a co-worker and trying to prove herself as a daughter. "But father—" she quickly cut herself off. He wasn't 'father' to her right now. "Sir, they need my help. Your fishing trip can wait."

Captain Mitchell's voice turned hard. "I won't say it again, return to the base."

"—But—"

"—That's an order!"

Dana pressed her lips together and did as she was told. With a cry, she turned the wheel once more and shifted the truck around. Pulling it into a higher gear, she sped back towards the AquaBase as quickly as it would go. Bailey bounced along in the backseat, holding onto the armrests for dear life as Dana continued to drive quickly.

"So?" Earl asked. Now his voice quivered in nervousness. "How much further?" He tightened his grasp on the tackle box in his lap, smiling nervously to Dana.

"Not long," Dana said flatly. She continued to focus on the road until a bright blast of light obstructed her vision. A solar flare. Then the temperature around them rapidly started to increase. Dana turned on the AC as high as it would go, but it didn't make a difference. The temperature steadily continued to climb seconds before a fireball shot down in front of her, striking the road.

The asphalt melted and Dana let out a gasp, pulling hard to swerve around the path in front of her. More fireballs started to rain down and Dana quickly lost control of the car, trying to drag it straight. Still, she couldn't stop herself before crashing into the side of a nearby building. Earl pitched forward, dropping his tackle box. It spilled open, ice falling out onto the floor of the cabin.

"Oh no," Earl gasped.

He glanced at Dana and Bailey and leapt out of the car, grabbing as much ice as he could to throw bac into the tackle box. "Hey, what are you—?" Dana broke off, seeing what was inside. A gasp escaped her lips and her eyes widened. "The fuel cell?" she murmured. "You had it the whole time?"

"Yes, I did, "Early agreed. "Your father and I hoped nothing happened. But he insisted that in case something happened, you'd get me to the AquaBase safely."

"He said that?" Dana asked.

"Of course." Early gently grasped her arm. "Dana, he couldn't believe in your more. You and your sisters." There was a sudden blast of energy and Dana and Early were knocked aside. Earl dropped the tacklebox once more, spilling its contents.

Bailey looked over as Vypra appeared—the one behind the attack—and walked towards them, laughing menacingly as she went. "Vypra," Bailey growled.

"Hand over the fuel cell," Vypra said.

"Not on your life," Bailey replied. She nodded over to Dana. "Get Earl out of here."

Dana hesitated. "What about you?"

"The fuel cell is more important," Bailey replied. With that, she turned and raced towards Vypra. Once she was close enough, she jumped up high and did a spinning kick, striking Vypra on the side of the head. Vypra rolled to the side and got back to her feet, charging towards Bailey.

Bailey ducked and dropped herself to the ground in a judo sweep that knocked Vyrpa's legs out from underneath her. Once Vypra was on the ground, she pressed her hands onto Vypra's chest and flipped over her. Vypra reached out and grabbed Bailey's leg, pitching her to the ground. Bailey fell hard, arms outstretched and felt Vypra holding her down with a foot to her back. Bailey pressed her hands hard on the ground and pushed herself upwards. The two flipped back to their feet and stood apart from each other.

Bailey raced forward and placed her hand on Vypra's shoulders and lifted herself up into a high jump over her. Then she back-kicked as hard as she could, knocking Vypra to the ground. She ran after Dana and Earl, following them to the side of the marina. Dana grasped Bailey's arm and pulled her back to her side as they backed towards the edge.

Confused, Bailey glanced over at the water behind them, seeing there was nowhere else to go. Then she looked at Dana who nodded and mouthed, "Trust me." Bailey hesitated. She may have trusted Dana long before, when they were just getting to know each other. But now…? Still, she had no choice and Bailey nodded back.

"Nowhere to run, rangers," Vypra hissed. She pulled her sword high above her head and sent energy blasts from her sword towards the three.

"Go!" Dana shouted. She bent down and grabbed a sheet of metal resting on the ground by her feet and held it up. The energy blast reflected off the metal sheet and Vypra cried out as it truck her. It gave Dana, Bailey, and Earl enough time to leap into the water behind them. Bailey treaded water, looking around to see what they were going to do then. Dana sucked in a deep breath and sank under water. Earl followed her lead.

Bailey's eyebrows furrowed together and she sucked in a deep breath before sliding under water as well. It was only then she saw the submarine that was hidden underwater. Dana swam over to it and pressed a button on the side, opening a hatch for them to get inside. Earl and Bailey followed, working to catch their breath while Dana hurried into the captain's seat, closing the hatch behind them before too much water could get in.

She piloted it towards the AquaBase's vehicle hanger, coming up through the water entrance, and took Earl to Captain Mitchell, who was waiting for them.

"Good work, Dana," Captain Mitchell said as soon as they arrived. He took the fuel cell, cradling it like a baby when Earl passed it over.

"Sir, the other rangers?" Dana asked. She could take Captain Mitchell's complement later. Right now, she needed to make sure her friends were okay. Captain Mitchell nodded for her to go and she was off to save them from Fireor, the new monster that was attacking the city.

Bailey watched her as she went.

Dana was a lot stronger than she gave herself credit for.

* * *

Kelsey rolled across the ground as she was struck by Fireor before Carter took her place, using his Lightspeed Saber to block Fireor's attacks. Then, suddenly, a shot from a blaster hit him, making Carter turn.

"Dana!" He cried. "Am I ever glad to see you."

"You're not going to have a barbecue without me, are you?" She asked with a chuckle, replacing her blaster to its holster. Her friends hurried to stand with her. "Now we'll see who feels the heat. Come on guys, let's do it. Power rangers, rescue ready!"

Fireor growled and charged to attack the rangers. What they didn't expect from him, however, was his power of teleportation via smoke and fire. As they tried to land a hit on him, they'd fall forward as he teleported away, only seconds before he unleashed a wall of fire that'd sent them to retreat. Then Fireor raced off to an abandoned warehouse that immediately became engulfed with flames. Still, that didn't' deter them from attacking him all at once. He sent fireball through the ceiling towards the rangers, it exploding on contact with the ground, pitching them over.

Avalon rolled out of the way and held out her hand. "Turbo Wild Hammer!" Spinning in a circle, she retrieved her Turbo weapon and used that momentum to gather speed and strength to hit Fireor in the face. He pitched to the ground. Carter and Dana grabbed Fireor by the legs, while Ryan, Kelsey, and Chad grabbed him by the arms to hold him still so that he would get hit by his own fireballs. It seemed to work until he suddenly grew in size, crashing through the ceiling and towering over the surrounding buildings.

"You're not getting away that easily," Dana replied to his maniacal laughter, now towering over the rangers. "Rail Rescues! On track!" To summon their zords, which they quickly entered.

"Ready," Carter said.

"Set!" Dana added.

"Blaster grips, lock on. Pyro Rescue 1," Carter said.

"Aqua Rescue 2," Chad said.

"Aerial Rescue 3," Joel said.

"Parts Rescue 4," Kelsey said.

"Med Recue 5," Dana said.

"Megazord Mode!" Carter called.

The zords came together to create the Rescue Megazord, where they immediately went into attack against Fireror. Fireror charged towards them, sword swinging, but they extended their ladder arms to keep him a safe distance away. With a twist of the Megazord's controls, Fireor was flung through the air, where he scrambled to get back to his feet.

"Ooh, that burns me up!" He cried. Then, with a roar, he charged towards the rangers, holding the sword high in the air.

"Lightspeed Flip Kick!" Dana commanded. With another twist of the controls the Megazord placed its ladder arms on the ground and the body of the Megazord flipped around, kicking Fireor twice when he came close. Once a first time, and a second when he got back up. "Lightspeed Megazord Saber! Ignite!" The saber created a fireball that engulfed their sword and when they swung the sword into Fireror, he exploded in a blaze even bigger than before.

He was defeated.

* * *

Back at the AquaBase, Dana paced back and forth in front of her father's office door. She needed to saw what she needed to say but…would she be talking to her father or her boss? That was a distinction that was even difficult for her to figure out. Even more so than her father. She paced one more, chewed her fingernails, then knocked before she could stop herself.

She waited for the call of 'come in' before waiting for the door to open. She slipped inside, almost as of afraid of stepping on a landmine. Don't make a sound and no one will blow up. Dana glanced at the aquarium that sat nestled in a wall and smiled a little. It had been one of the first things her father wanted for his office when he got the chance to design it.

Finally, Dana took a deep breath and whispered,"Hi, father."

"Dana," Captain Mitchell replied. He leaned back in his seat, dropping his pen from the documents he was signing. He eyed her. "Is there something on your mind?"

"I…wanted to apologize for what I said earlier," Dana said. She stepped towards him clasping her hands behind her back. "It's just…sometimes…I wonder if you only think of me as just your little girl." She shrugged, lowering her gaze. Not really a power ranger."

"Hm." Captain Mitchell managed a small smile. He got up from his seat and folded his arms, moving to stand in front of his daughter. "For years, I have been training you to become the pink power ranger and after today, I couldn't have been more right." His smile widened after a pause. "And all those years you've also been my little girl. I guess a part of me doesn't want that to change."

Dana grinned. "I'm proud to be a ranger, but dad, nothing tops being your little girl." Captain Mitchell smiled and moved to hug her, but his arms dropped to his sides when she added, "But if that's the case…then why can't you let Avalon and Bailey do the same?"

* * *

 **A/N:** Hey, I'm back! Now that I've finished the Avalon series (you should check it out) I've got more time for this and the Powerless series. However, I am contemplating putting up the Bailey series story Get Up for two reason 1) It has a different feel than the first two in the Bailey series. This and the next one are more episodic to show Bailey really understanding herself and being a ranger while the latter two continue to follow plots that were started in the Avalon series. And 2) Because it shows two different parts of her life and the juxtaposition will make it easier to write her character development.

I'm still thinking on it. If I decide to do it, I'll make a message here, but you should follow/alert me here or on my twitter to be the first to know. ;)

PS – The Mitchell family drama won't be shoved in your face all the time.

Thanks to **Adela, SpecialK92, and Ashley** for reviewing.

 **~Av**


	10. Some Secrets Revealed

**.:09:.**

 _Some Secrets Revealed_

* * *

Jason grinned when Avalon raced across the concrete and collided into him with a tight hug. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off the ground. He set her back down and grabbed her face to kiss her. Avalon threw her arms around his neck and tilted her head, giving him a long kiss.

Jason laughed when he pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. His eyes searched her face, noticing the smile that made her freckled cheeks bunch up. "Hm, never thought I'd see the day when you were actually happy," he said. "Let alone, happy to see me."

"I can't be happy to see my boyfriend?" Avalon shot back.

"I'm waiting for the part where you call me 'Rudolph' again," Jason pointed out.

"All in due time, mate. All in due time." She wrapped her arms around his stomach and rested her cheek against him. Jason smiled and put his chin atop her head as he hugged her back. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you."

"I got the idea when I saw the massive smile on your face." Jason stepped back and took Avalon's hand as they started to stroll around Mariner Bay. "And from your last couple of phone calls. Honestly, I think you're starting to freak out a little bit. There's always something that manages to freak you out."

"Uh, excuse me, but I think I'm one of the most levelheaded out of all of us," Avalon defended herself. Jason snorted. "I heard that."

"I know, that's why I decided to do it. Av, you're the _last_ levelheaded person I've met." He held up his hand when Avalon pushed him on the arm. "You're reckless and judgmental and jump to conclusions and jump into fights…"

"I don't know how many people would do that when faced with a 90 foot monster that's taking down their city." Avalon waved her free hand other. "Other than this new lot, anyway."

"Yeah, a lot has changed since we've been rangers," Jason agreed. "Well, since _I've_ been a ranger." He tightened his grasp around her hand. "There was always something going on when we were rangers and now life is…"

"Boring?"

"I was going to say slower, but okay." Jason directed them over to a nearby bench and sat down. Avalon nestled next to him and he put his arm around her shoulders. "But slower is okay. I'm able to actually stay in my classes long enough that I don't have the reflexes of wanting to run every time I hear a bell go off."

Avalon laughed. "Yeah, I think that's the part I'm not going to get over." She rolled her eyes. "Especially when they're so freeing loud out here."

"It _is_ a governmental military base," Jason pointed out.

Avalon bobbed her head back and forth and nodded. The two fell in silence for a long stretch of time. Avalon sighed wistfully. It was actually what she really needed at that moment. She was tired of the way her dad—sorry, Captain Mitchell—treated her and Bailey, tired of being seen as an accessory to the ranger team rather than an asset, tired of the way he breathed down her neck over her college classes and micromanaged her when she was training with the other rangers. To the point she was surprised she hadn't punched him yet.

Though, if she were being honest, it wasn't just because of the way he treated her. It was for everything. The point of them going out there was to try and talk to him about everything that had been going on and he was still silent about it. Even Miss. Fairweather did her best to reassure the girls that he still really wanted to talk to them about how he truly felt.

"You just need to be patient," she said. "There's a lot that's going on with him right now, especially with this new team of rangers and the demons that are running around."

"Really?" Avalon had asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I hadn't noticed considering how much he's been drilling them into the ground and they all follow him like sheep."

"Your father is very well respected in what he does and he loves this job more than anything."

"I realized that a long time ago."

Miss. Fairweather had given her a look and hurried over to one of the scientists that was frantically waving her over while something sparked behind them. And it was then that Avalon had decided to call Jason and ask him to visit. She knew she was being nasty, but there was something about being around her father that instantly put her in a bad mood. She used to be that way with her mother, actually.

A small smile came to Avalon's face as she remembered it. How was she supposed to act when her mother had suddenly arrived in Angel Grove when she hadn't seen or heard from her in a few years. That moment of her arrival had set everything in motion. It made her aware of Dana and Ryan and an entire new family and life she didn't know she had. If she thought about it seriously enough, that's where all of her problems started.

That's when everything with the Vipers came to a head, when she found out about all of the lies that had been told to her, when she found out that her friends weren't as upstanding as she thought they were. (And sort of made fun of them for). The thought of it, knowing how long it ago it had been, Avalon was able to see how much she changed. Though it still stung.

 _"Yes, I'm looking for my daughter. She's supposed to be in this class."_

 _Avalon immediately recognized the velvety, accented voice and before she could stop herself, an audible gasp escaped her lips. Her friends turned her way and having taken one look at her face, they knew she knew who was at the door. Still, Avalon stayed rooted to the spot as Ms. Appleby opened the door further and invited Ellie Mitchell into the classroom._

 _"Mum?" Avalon finally managed to find her voice. For the first time in her life she didn't sound confident. Her fingers curled into her palms, her knees started to shake, and she was sure she would pass out at any second. "Mum?"_

 _"Hey sweetie," Ellie Mitchell returned with a bright smile._

 _"Avalon, it seems that your mother would like to have a word with you," Ms. Appleby said to the orange ranger with a bright smile. "Feel free to take a few minutes."_

 _"Thanks." Avalon slowly rose from her seat and gathered her books and backpack. She followed her mother out of the classroom, gently closing the door behind them. She turned to her mother, who stood in front of her, smiling warmly. Ellie's eyes turned misty as the seconds passed, her eyes trying to drink in every part of her eldest daughter before she opened her arms and hugged her._

 _Avalon surprised herself by reaching her arms up and wrapping them around her mother, hugging her tightly. She smelled like roses, exactly as Avalon remembered. Her hug was as tender and calming just as any mother's was and Avalon found her eyes welling up the longer she held onto her mother. Ellie pulled back and cupped Avalon's face in her hands, smiling warmly at her. She used her thumb to push away a tear that escaped Avalon's eyes, rolling down her cheek._

 _"I don't know why I'm crying," Avalon murmured, embarrassed. She hadn't known how she would react when she finally saw her mother again and now…Avalon took a step back. She was angry at her. She had left them all for drugs and wanting to have her own life. Well, she could just keep that life she wanted. Avalon's eyes hardened and she took a step back away from Ellie. "What are you doing here?" Her voice come out as a hiss._

 _Ellie raised an eyebrow. "I see your father has been telling you a lot of things," she said, her melodic voice taking on a sarcastic tone. Avalon heel turned and headed towards her locker. Ellie followed behind her, her high heels clacking as she went. "I want you to know what he's said isn't true."_

 _"So you didn't abandon us?" Avalon snapped. "Sorry, I thought not being around for three years meant that."_

 _"No. Cadence, there's a lot that you don't understand."_

 _"That's an understatement."_

 _"If you'd give me a chance to explain, then you'd see that I'm not as bad a person as you think I am," Ellie continued, matching her stride. Avalon stopped at her locket and opened the door. She pretended to look for her books for her next class, but her mind was so confused she just stood there, staring at the notebooks, folders and textbooks resting on the bench. She stared at the back of the metal locker, trying to figure out what to say. Ellie moved up next to Avalon, opened the door further. "Avalon?"_

 _"Fuck off, Mum," Avalon finally found something to say. "You don't deserve it." She reached out a hand to close her locker door, but stopped when Ellie firmly grabbed onto her wrist. She turned towards her mother, glaring up at her, surprised to find Ellie glaring back. That's where I got it from, Avalon thought. She resembled her mother more than her father._

 _"Whether you like it or not, Cadence, I'm still your mother and I will not allow you to speak to me that way," Ellie said firmly. "Now, if you're done throwing a temper tantrum and hang on a tick before your next class, there are a lot of things we need to talk about." She lowered her hand, her eyes following the movement. Avalon quickly pulled her hand back, but it was too late. "What's that?"_

 _"A tattoo," Avalon replied coolly, silently daring her mother to say something about it._

 _Ellie nodded. She hitched her purse up over her shoulder and took a step back, giving Avalon room to close her locker door. Letting out a sigh that seemed to come from the tips of her toes, the orange ranger closed her locker door and turned to her mother, nodding. Ellie gave a grateful smile and walked out of the front of Angel Grove high, carefully sitting down on the front steps as the rangers had done before. Avalon sat down next to her, feet in front of her, hands dropped down and dangling between her legs._

 _"Cadence, what you and Abigail need to know—"_

 _"She goes by Bailey," Avalon interrupted._

 _Ellie smiled. "She always had insisted on that," she said. Ellie pushed her blonde hair away from her dark eyes her smile fading. "I know it's been a long time but I need you to know that I haven't stopped thinking about you and your sister since…what happened between me and your father."_

 _"You mean before I was shipped out here?" Avalon spat._

 _Ellie nodded grimly. "What you need to know, sweetie, is that we weren't as happy as you and Bailey thought we were." Avalon's eyes slowly narrowed. "Yes, there was a time when we were in love, but I wasn't in love with the man your father was. I was in love with his image. You see, I thought he was a single man that was working with the government. Turns out, while he didn't lie, he wasn't exactly upfront with what he really was."_

 _Ellie gently shook her head. "The boofhead," she added. Avalon continued to stare at her. Ellie took a deep breath and continued. "You see, your father…he was doing experiments while working with the government, making different sources of energy and working alongside those that are experts in machinery. Unbeknownst to me, he was studying different extraterrestrial attacks that the Earth had seen before and was trying to find a way to prevent them. It was with that studying he had heard about these beings called Power Rangers."_

 _Avalon could feel her face blanch. She did her best not to look her mother directly in the eye or down at her power morpher. Discreetly, she moved her hand up to cover her communicator._

 _"And with that knowledge, knowing there had never been a set of rangers that were on earth and set out trying to make powers for humans to take over to become rangers as well, so that in case the earth was attacked again, they could defend it." Ellie sighed. "Well, one day he was testing it out in the garage and you walked inside and were hit by the beam that held the power. When your father told me I was furious, I demanded that he would keep that work away from you and Bailey and then this happened. He and I watched you for days, to see if there was anything different about you and when nothing happened, he became irate; disappointed that I hadn't worked, and effectively shut himself off of the world to keep trying. I was tired of being ignored and I didn't want that in my home, it as the final straw to the relationship that we had and I gave him the ultimatum that we if he didn't stop, I was going to leave him and take you and Bailey with me."_

 _Avalon blinked, all of the angry tension leaving her. "What?"_

 _"As soon as I told him that, he freaked out and we took it to court to see who would have custody. You see, your father and I were never married when we had you and Bailey. We were going to that point before…everything happened. So when it came up in court they saw a woman that had no job as she was a stay at home mom and a man that worked for the government who had the money to give you two everything you wanted. I fought hard, but I lost custody. I couldn't see you at all. So, I started to work hard, I got a job and did everything I could be sure I could be a good mother to you two. When I came back I was told that…you were gone. William had sent you to live with his sister and that was that."_

 _Ellie took Avalon's hand in hers. "I still plan on becoming your mother again; it just took me this long to find you. Your father didn't want to tell me at first—"_

 _"He knows where I am?" Avalon's eyebrows twitched. "That we've been living here…what we've been through?"_

 _Ellie nodded. Her eyes moved to Avalon's tattoo and she placed her hand in her daughter's. "I know about the trouble you've been in, where you've been living, how things are going for you now. And I want things to get better for you."_

 _"Wait. Just. Wait." Avalon brought her hands up to her head and took in a few deep breaths. She squeezed her eyes shut. What just happened? Everything that she had known had been a lie. Her parents…their relationship…her mother being on drugs…what was even real anymore? "You weren't on drugs?"_

 _"No."_

 _"You and Dad weren't married?"_

 _"No."_

 _"He knew where we were the whole time and he didn't want to try and get us?" Avalon lifted her head, teeth clenched tightly together. Her face was screwed up in a glare. "I don't fucking believe this!" She stood up, stomping her feet on the step. She stomped so hard that it cracked under her foot. Ellie glanced at the crack but remained silent._

 _"Is everything OK?" Kimberly's sweet voice came from behind them and Avalon turned to find her friends slowly making their way out of the front of the school, coming down the steps behind them._

 _Ellie stood up and turned to the rangers, holding her hand out towards Tommy. "I'm Eleanor Mitchell."_

 _"I'm Tommy." He shook her hand firmly, giving her a smile. "And this Kimberly, Zack, Trini, Billy, and Jason." Each one smiled and waved as their names were called. Tommy hesitated before motioning over to Avalon. "We're Avalon's and Bailey's friends. It's nice to meet you Mrs. Mitchell."_

 _"Ellie is fine," she corrected him, holding up her hands. She turned back to Avalon. "I was just…explaining some things to Avalon and understandably she didn't take it well." She then turned back to Billy. "I understand that my daughters have been living with you for a while now."_

 _"That's right," Billy agreed._

 _"Thank you, to you and your parents for taking my girls in," Ellie said sincerely. "I know things haven't been easy for them but the hospitality and everything that you've shown them is all they or I could have asked for."_

 _Billy nodded._

 _"So you know about everything?" Zack pressed. His eyes shifted to Avalon, who brought a hand up to scratched her forehead, using it as a cover for the scowl that appeared on her face._

 _"Yeah," Avalon said. "She knows about The Vipers and everything. She knows what Bailey and I have been through." She brushed a loose strand of hair out of her face, and then twisted her mouth to the side. "But, Mum, if you and Dad weren't married…what was wrong with your relationship that made things break up so badly?"_

 _Ellie gave Avalon a sad smile. She turned away for a moment, covering her mouth with a hand and cleared her throat before looking directly at her daughter. Avalon raised her eyebrows, waiting for a response. "Cadey… your father and I weren't married…but he had been before." Avalon's eyebrows slammed together. "In fact, I didn't know he had been. I thought he was single. I had been…sleeping with him while he was still married and had you. Not long after you were born, your father's wife died."_

 _Avalon's eyebrows wrinkled her forehead now, giving her a headache._

 _"He has a son and a daughter from that wife. You have a brother and a sister. Their names are Ryan and Dana. Ryan is a little older than you and Dana is around your age." Ellie shook her head. "I didn't know until after Bailey was born. Then it all made sense. His constant trips, times where he would suddenly get off the phone. He was with her."_

 _"That's not true," Avalon murmured. "You're lying!"_

 _"I'm not," Ellie said firmly. "She was sick with cancer, he knew she didn't have much longer to live and he was depressed, knowing she wasn't going to be around and with his workload and the hospital visits and that's around the time I met him…" She trailed off. "I thought you needed to know," Ellie murmured._

 _Trini looked at Billy and spoke before the blue ranger could stop her. "It's true." All eyes turned to her._

 _Billy licked his lips. "You had told me his name once, and I decided to look it up, to see what else he had been working on along with the powers you now have." He cleared his throat as he looked at his best friend. Her face had gone from extreme anger to extreme hurt. A second later it was gone, replaced with an apathetic mask. "And…when I was doing that, I found out that he had another family. Dana and Ryan are your half brother and sister. It's true."_

 _Kimberly covered her mouth with her hand._

 _Avalon held up a hand, pinched the bridge of her nose then lowered her shaking hand. "You both knew and you didn't tell me?" Their guilty expressions gave her the answer she needed. "I don't fucking believe this!" She walked up a step and shoved Billy hard on the shoulder. Jason quickly moved down to her side and took her arm, pulling her a few steps away. He kept his hand on her arm. "I live in your house, helped you get with her,"—she gestured to Trini—"willingly submitted myself to science experiments so you could try and figure out what was going on with my extra powers, was a friend to you, and after all of that you decided to keep this a secret? ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND?!"_

 _"We're sorry, Avalon," Trini apologized, pleading. "We just didn't think it was right for you to know—"_

 _" I'm not talking to you!" Avalon spat at the yellow ranger before turning her gaze back to the blue ranger. "How long have you known?"_

 _Billy opened and closed his mouth for a few moments then lowered his gaze. "A while," he admitted._

 _Avalon pursed her lips and glanced at Jason before looking at Kimberly, Tommy, and Zack, whose faces held different levels of shock. "I'm guessing by the stupid looks on your faces that you lot didn't know either?" She didn't let them respond before turning back to her mother._

 _"We didn't mean to keep it from you, Ava," Billy continued. She winced, hearing the nickname come from his mouth. "We just—"_

 _Avalon gave him the finger, turning away from him. She walked over to her mother, looking up at her. As Ellie looked back, she could see a scared, broken little girl that was on the edge of bursting out into tears, confused and just wanting comfort from her mother. Ellie reached up and cupped Avalon's cheek._

 _"I know this is a lot for you to work through—"_

 _"For her to work through?" Zack broke in. "I'm so confused!"_

She sighed and shook her head. Jason noticed and leaned back so he could look at her face clearly. "What's up?" He gently rubbed her shoulder. "You look like you're upset about something."

The corner of Avalon's lips turned up. "Not upset, really," she said. "Just thinking about a lot of things. Wondering what the point truly is being here."

"You wondered the same thing about being in Angel Grove," Jason pointed out. "And that turned out to be one of the best things that could've happened." He licked his lips and leaned back. "Without you and Bailey joining our team, who knows where we would've ended up. With the new monsters and threats that came around—"

"—If we hadn't come around, then you wouldn't have become addicted to steroids, Kim wouldn't have become anorexic—"

"—You don't know that, Avie." Jason removed his arm from her shoulders and dropped his hands to his lap. He leaned forward to look her in the eye. His eyebrows lowered to a serious expression. "Everything happens for a reason. Even if you guys weren't there we'd still probably have to go against those new monsters. Rita and Zedd were doing their best to take us down and they would've done anything to do it. My decision to take steroids was my decision. It wasn't a good idea, but I don't regret everything I've learned from it. If we didn't learn from the decisions we make in life, then life isn't worth living."

"Thanks, Zordon," Avalon teased, gently pushing him on the arm. Jason laughed. "Do you always have to give me lectures like that?"

"Only when I feel you need it." He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "As for your new team, I'm sure it'll take some time for you to get used to them. It was the same when you met us." He nodded. "Sure, getting used to Dana and your father being around must be hard but if there's anyone that can handle it. It's you. And being able to work with these new Lightspeed powers must be pretty cool."

Avalon heard something in his voice and her eyes narrowed. "What do you mean? It's just new powers, like we seem to get every year."

"Well, considering it's the same powers your father was using when you were little, and you were exposed to it…now that Billy's managed to help perfect them—"

Avalon's body went cold. Instead of the warmth she felt from sitting next to her boyfriend, a shudder went through her. Backing away, Avalon mimicked Jason's stance to look back at him. "What?" Avalon asked, a bite to her tone.

"The Lightspeed powers," Jason clarified. "Billy helped your dad perfect them." Then he noticed the thunderous look on her face. "Didn't you know?"

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ Thank you so much for those that are continuing to read and enjoy the story. Next chapter is Bailey focused. Hope you all like this one, as well as Jason's appearance. Also, if you haven't already, check out the next story in the Powerless series, _The Wounded Hart_ all about Kimberly!

 _ **~Av**_


	11. Crumbling Walls

**.:10:.**

 _Crumbling Walls  
_

* * *

"These are your new Lightspeed Cycles," Miss. Fairweather said, waving her hand over the rainbow colored motorcycles parked alongside the Rescue Rover. She glanced at Captain Mitchell, who stood aside, hands clasped behind his back. He gave her an encouraging nod and she smiled back. Her eyes swept over the rangers, landing on Joel for a moment, and she pressed her glasses up her nose. "They're capable of supersonic speeds and have the most advanced weaponry system."

"It should be what you need the next time you come across Vypra and the rest of her monsters," Captain Mitchell added. "They're only going to get stronger and continue to test you to the length of your abilities. So far, the monsters you've come up against are nothing compared to what you're going to go up against later. Is that understood."

"Yes, sir!" Came the unanimous reply, with Joel going so far a to do an exaggerated yell complete wht a salute and stomping his feet together. Carter, Dana, Kelsey, and Chad all tried to keep from laughing. Miss. Fairweather brought her finger up to cover her mouth as her shoulders shook.

Joel's grin widened towards Miss. Fairweather and her chees reddened, making her laugh harder. It wasn't until Captain Mitchell turned her way with raised eyebrows that she abruptly stopped and turned away, fiddling with her glasses. Then Captain Mitchell turned his gaze to Joel and his smile immediately dropped from his face. He widened his eyes innocently and looked around the hangar, leaning back and forth.

"Did you hear that echo?" He asked.

Kelsey snorted, Chad squeezed his eyes shut, and Carter and Dana looked towards the ceiling to keep themselves from bursting out into hysterical laughter. Captain Mitchell must've bene having a good day for instead of reaming Joel out for his insolence, he said calmly, "Joel, how often do you clean your planes? For your stunting?"

Joel scratched the back of his head then puffed out his chest proudly. "As often as I need to. Nothing is more important than having a clean plane to impress the crowd."

"I'm glad you said that." Captain Mitchell walked over to the Rescue Rover and leaned into the passenger seat. He pulled up the top of the console and pressed a button on the inside. A door on the side of the vehicle opened to reveal buckets and rags. He picked up a bucket, filled it with rags, chams, and a bottle of soap. Turning around, he held it out to Joel. "Because for your little stunt back there, you're going to clean every vehicle in this hangar."

Joel's smile immediately dropped from his face while his friends and teammates finally burst out into hysterical laughter. He held out his hands and took the bucket Captain Mitchell handed to him. "I'm guessing there's no way to get out of this…?"

"You'd be right." Captain Mitchell patted Joel on the shoulder. "And please take your time, I want to see them sparkle by the time I come back. You do take pride in your work as I understand. Let's hope you put as much pride into this." He nodded to the others. "Dismissed."

"Hey, hope you know that thee cleaning chemical can be pretty harsh on your hands," Dana teased. "You may want to put lotion on when you're done." She pointed to the soap. "That stuff is especially strong."

"Yeah, and the good news is, you don't have to worry about having missed your workout this morning." Carter snickered. "All of that buffing and polishing is really going to work out your arms."

"Have fun," Kelsey trilled, finger waving to him.

"Yeah, looks like it'll be a blast," Chad agreed.

"You know, you can join me on this fun," Joel said, holding out his arms to plead to his friends. "It'll be a blast if we're all working on this together."

Miss. Fairweather stepped up to Joel's side, her hands clasped together behind her back. "Captain Mitchell gave you an order and he expects you to do it the way he asked." She gave him a sly smile. "And trust me, he's thought of every excuse in the book you could come up with to not do it. I'll be back to check on you later."

"Or you can just stay here and keep me company," Joel suggested.

"I have too much work to do on your zords," Miss. Fairweather said. "There's always something that gets damaged when you're in battle." She looked over at him and nodded. "Otherwise, I'd love to." With that, she swished out of the hangar leaving Joel with a hanging mouth and wide eyes behind her.

Joel's eyes shifted over to his friends, who were slowly leaving the hangar as well, pushing each other around as they went. "You saw that, right?" He asked. "Someone, please tell me you saw that?"

"Saw what?" Kelsey asked, twisting around to look at him. Her face contorted into an expression of confusion when Joel groaned, dropping his bucket of supplies to put his face in his hands. "What's up with him?" She asked the others.

"It's Joel, what do you expect?" Chad joked.

They went to the door to leave the hangar then stopped short when Carter threw out his arm. He bit his lower lip, as if torn, seeing Captain Mitchell standing calmly at the end of the hallway. He'd just stopped short from running into Avalon, who rounded the corner so fast she nearly barged into him. Behind her was a teenage boy the others didn't recognize.

"Who do you think you are?" Avalon demanded before Captain Mitchell could speak.

Nevertheless, his eyes narrowed into angry slits and took a deep breath to calm himself. "Avalon, I'd be careful of the way out speak to—"

"You gave up the right to demand any respect from me the moment you gave up your parental rights," Avalon spat back. She jabbed her finger at him. "What else are you going to do? Throw me into a fiery pit the moment you get the chance?" Behind her, the teenage boy winced, as if she'd said something hurtful to him. "Or are you just going to continue to find ways to lie to me." She folded her arms. "What did you _really_ bring me and Bay out here for?"

Captain Mitchell pressed his lips together, his mustache twitching. The only thing that gave away his anger was the way his shoulders hunched. "Avalon, I'd like to speak with you in my office—"

"No, you're not going to run away from this. We're going to talk about it _now_." Avalon's eyes flashed. "Ever since you gave me and Bay up, you've done nothing but try to act like the father you've never been. No matter where I go you somehow try to control me. And now I found out that these new powers you've created has been worked on by one of my friends and you weren't going to tell me? The very same powers that you exposed me to ages ago?"

Captain Mitchell held up his hands. "Avalon, I'm not going to speak with you like this."

"You're a fucking coward!" She started to turn away then stopped and turned back. "No, you're selfish! And you don't care about anyone but yourself! You've been bloody selfish your entire life. You cheated on her mum," she motioned to Dana, "and kept me and Bay a secret all because you wanted to make sure your precious image and your fucking career were intact. And now that you're in this government position you treat us like we're soldiers rather than people, rather than your own children. I'm sick of it and I'm sick of having to answer to you. You're as lousy a leader as you are a father."

With that, she turned on her heel and stormed back up the hallway. The young man tried to grab her arm but she shrugged him off, continuing without him. He looked after her then turned back to Captain Mitchell. "Hello, sir, I don't know if you remember me—"

"—Yes, you're Jason Scott, I've heard a lot about you," Captain Mitchell said. He held out his hand for Jason to shake. "I'm sorry that our meeting has to be under difficult situations."

"Yeah." Jason reached out and shook Captain Mitchell's hand. "I'm sorry for the way Avalon spoke to you, but—"

"—But she's hurt and is being honest with what she's feeling," Captain Mitchell said. "That has never been a problem for her." He looked over at the rangers, noticing they were staring at him. "Would you like to speak with me in my office?"

"Yes, sir."

Captain Mitchell regarded the rangers once more. "You're dismissed. Fall out." With that, he turned on his heel and led Jason up to his office, leaving the rangers to stare at each other in surprise. Then they looked at Dana, who stared at the floor.

Kelsey reached out to put her hand on Dana's shoulder. "Dana—"

Dana shoved Kelsey's hand off and quickly walked away from her friends, her gaze on the ground as she went. She didn't look back at her friends.

* * *

Chad gently drifted through the water a multiple schools of fish darted around him. He moved in a lazy circle then turned around to watch Bailey as she slowly moved behind him. He smiled around the regulator in his mouth, making sure water didn't seep in. He could see behind her face mask that her eyes were wide with wonder as she moved along the tank that housed the animals. He pointed ahead to a sea turtle that drifted nearby and the two went over to slide their hands along its shell.

Silvery bubbles erupted from their tanks as they did so, slowly moving to the top of the tank. They turned on their backs and continued to drift backwards. The water gently buoyed them as they went. Chad stretched his arms above his head, sliding his hands through the water like a knife slicing through bread. How much time did he spend in the water? Much more time than on land, that was for sure.

The water was his home away from home and a place that made it easy for him to leave his worrying thoughts behind. No one knew how hard it was, to suddenly be thrust into the spotlight as a Power Rangers. As someone who was working to save the city in more ways than what was readily accepted. Chad had gone from someone who worked at an aquarium to someone who little kids looked up to with wide eyes of wonder and silently stared and pointed when he went by.

The crowds at his job was even bigger than before, and there were more people who were coming up to him for autographs afterwards. It was a humbling experience, especially when his family called to ask about his saves for the day, asking about the new threats that had just been announced on the news. He tried to smile and act as if nothing new was going on, but it was hard to keep from getting a big head every now and then.

It was going to work with the marine animals that helped him out a lot. Their lives depending on him and his work and it was something he greatly enjoyed. But how was he going to continue to do the job when Vypra and the other monsters were continuously attacking the city on a daily basis. How many days would he be able to skip or run off with no excuse before his boss fired him?

Chad shook his head, focusing on the fish and turtles in front of him once more. That's what was important. He had to remember that. Had to make sure he kept his life as balanced as he did with his martial arts training. There were enough stressors for him to think about it taking over his life.

Feeling a tug on his leg, Chad turned to see Bailey gently floating beside him. She tugged his ankle once more then motioned to the gauge that sat on the side of her line. Chad reached over and grabbed onto it, he nodded when he read it, seeing the needle was starting to lower towards the end. They needed to resurface. Lifting a hand, Chad gave the thumbs up sign and the two slowly started to ascend from the tank, stopping every few feet until they reached the surface. With one hand, Chad removed his mask and regulator before reaching over to help Bailey remove hers as well.

She gasped for air once everything was set aside. "I've been scuba diving before," she said. "But that really took a lot out of me."

"It can be really difficult to get back into if you've stopped for a while," Chad said. "Otherwise, it always takes some time to get acclimated to." He pulled himself up onto the edge of the tank before grasping Bailey's hands to help her up as well. "We may have risen too fast for your body to get used to."

Bailey nodded but continued to stay silent. Chad looked at her, struggling to figure out what to say. Rumors and whispers had already started to spread around about how Avalon had confronted their father that day and Bailey had been very quiet since hearing it. Chad couldn't even help but notice she was doing her best to avoid Avalon throughout the day. Flinching nearly every time a door opened nearby, as if expecting to be yelled at.

Chad realized she needed as much time away from the AquaBase to relax if she was going to keep from jumping too much when there were enough loud noises. Even Dana was affected by what had gone on, not leaving her room since she had left her friends after Avalon's and Captain Mitchell's fight. He certainly wasn't the only one who needed some time away.

"Things are going to be okay, Bailey," Chad reassured her. He gently swished his legs back and forth in the water. "It's all hectic right now, but everything will be okay."

Bailey snorted. "You don't know my family. It's always been messed up."

"How so?"

She paused. "I reckon there's a lot I can't say. Av was telling the truth when she said our dad gave up his parental rights to us. Av's been the best mum and dad I could have but…" she ran a hand through her hair. "We've been through a lot and…sometimes I wish she would've asked for help. But I understand why she didn't. Seeing dad try to act like nothing happened…it's so…" she clenched her hands into fists so hard they violently shook. When she opened her hands, Chad saw cuts in her palms, a small trickle of blood coming out of the puncture wounds.

"And you were a ranger, too," Chad added. "That must've been hard."

A sad smile came to Bailey's lips. "It wasn't hard, it was one of the best things that's ever happened to me."

"Why'd you give it up?"

"Because I wanted to try to balance both parts of my life. But it's like they always say, you don't know what you've got until it's gone."

"I'm sure a lot of people can agree with that sentiment," Chad agreed. He was certainly one of them. He hadn't known how much of his quiet life he enjoyed until he was thrust into the spotlight. And, honestly, was starting to wonder if it was something that would go on forever.

* * *

Dana lifted her hand from her palm as there was a knock on the door to her room. She hesitated for a moment, trying to decide whether or not to answer. She didn't think it'd be her father, he was never one to come to her room, she had to go to his office. If it were Kelsey, she would've jut barged in, it was her room too. Joel was still too busy to be able to stop and come to her for help—though he did try multiple calls through their communicators—Chad had immediately gone to work, Avalon was certainly too angry to want to talk to her…

The knock came again.

"Come in," Dana finally called.

She turned in her seat to find the door to her room open and Carter stand in the doorway. He held his hands in the pockets of his slacks, shoulders hunched as he took a tentative step into her room. Dana smiled a little. Carter, she had seen, was the sort of person that followed every rule to the letter. The idea of going into the bedroom of someone of the opposite sex was probably more than he could bear. Or else the idea of comforting her was something he wasn't very used to, either.

 _He's a firefighter, Dana,_ she reminded herself. _He has to be able to comfort people, it's part of his job._ She waited for him to say something then lifted her eyebrows when he was still silent. "Yes, Carter? What can I do for you?"

Carter's gaze slid to her. "I was wondering how you were doing," he said.

Dana's lips pulled back at the corners. Just as she thought. "I hate to break it to you, Carter, but your bedside manner could use some work." She tapped her pen against her notebook. "I have some book for you to read on the very subject if you're interested."

"It seems to me it's something you may need to look at yourself," Carter said. At Dana's glare he added, lifting a hand, "I mean, after what happened today and with your improved relationship with the Captain, I feel it's something that may be difficult to talk about."

Dana rolled her eyes. "My dad has done may things in life that are difficult to talk about," she said. "And other things that we can't talk about at all or else he'd have to kill me. Sometimes I wish he'd just go ahead and do that."

"You can't be serious."

Dana gave him a wry smile. "I'm entirely serious. My life has been nothing but serious. You have no idea what it's like to have grown up around all of this." She gestured towards the room. "And when I have try to move on…my past keeps pulling me back."

"I can understand that," Carter agreed with a nod. He took a hesitant step forward. Dana almost laughed out loud. If he were any more uncomfortable, his head would explode. "Everyone has a past they want to move on from."

"What about you?"

"Excuse me?" The question seemed to catch Carter off-guard.

Dana folded her arms. "You say everyone has a past they want to move on from, what about you? What are you trying to move on from?"

"There's not much I'm trying to hide."

"Oh, because you're so perfect?" All of a sudden the image of Carter shirtless, as they had first met, entered her head. Perfect. Right. His body certainly was well maintained from all of his hard work. She couldn't help but notice. _It's your job to notice things,_ Dana reassured herself. _A skill you've always had. It's nothing anything you'd particularly paid attention to._

Carter shrugged then glanced towards the ceiling, thinking. "I didn't do so well in school."

Dana made a face. "Excuse me?"

"I didn't do so well in school. For a while. On tests and papers…"

Dana feigned shock, pressing her hands to her cheeks. "The red ranger didn't do well in school? He's not perfect? That's a surprise."

Carter mimicked her stance, folding her arms as he gave her a look. "I didn't do so well in school because, for a while, I didn't like school. So I didn't try. And my grades suffered when I got caught cheating a few times." Dana's eyes widened. "Yes, I cheated on my tests when I was younger. It's not that surprising."

"For you?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

For a moment, Dana wondered if he were offended. But then he saw the smile that was starting to work its way to his lips and recognized the teasing lift in his voice. She soon found herself smiling as well. "Nothing, just…you're so straight laced."

"And you're not?" Carter started to count on his fingers. "You make sure all of your supplies are alphabetical, you're the first to get to every one of our trainings, the last to leave, you do all the paperwork…you don't really have fun."

Now Dana's mouth dropped open. "I do, too, have fun!" Carter lifted an eyebrow. "Just because I don't want to throw myself off a cliff like Kelsey doesn't mean I don't know how to have fun." Carter continued to smirk at her. "Okay, what about you? When was the last time you didn't run yourself ragged working out and making sure you got top marks on all of our tests?"

"Mmm." Carter thought about it.

Dana laughed. "That's pathetic."

"Maybe." Carter turned back towards the door. "I was just heading out into town. I just…stopped by to see if you were okay."

"Thank you." Dana suddenly felt very self-conscious, rubbing her arms. "I…really appreciate it." Carter nodded and left her room. He sat back at her desk and picked up her pen to start writing again. But soon found after a few seconds that she was tapping her pen more than she was writing again.

And that only happened when she was distracted.

The first time, she was trying to push off the embarrassment of her family life being thrown out there.

Now…Dana pressed her lips together. She was still distracted, but at least she wasn't as angry.

* * *

 **A/N:** And, finally, we're starting Diabolicco's plot of the story in the next chapter. It took me a bit longer than I anticipated to get there but there were some other things that needed to come up first.

For those of you that read _The Wounded Hart,_ it'll be updated soon.

Thanks to **ChibiDawn23, Son of Whitebeard, and Adela** for reviewing.

 _ **~Av**_


	12. Diabolico

**.:11:.**

 _Diabolico_

* * *

Bailey pulled her wet hair out of its ponytail and shook it around her shoulders. Her aching and sore shoulders. But the pain was worth it. Being able to hang out with Chad and go snorkeling was fun. Much more fun than she thought it'd be. Especially considering how long it'd been since she'd been to the beach or in the water in any capacity.

The beach was one of her favorite places in the world and, funny enough, she hadn't been able to go very much when she lived in Angel Grove. They went to the park a lot, the youth center, the mall, hung out at each other's houses, but not the beach so much. She remembered Kimberly saying something about not liking how much sand was everywhere, despite loving to get a tan. Then Billy said something about the risks of skin cancer and…

Yeah, that went out the window fast.

Bailey ran a hand through her hair and let out a long sigh. So many memories of Angel Grove had started to come to mind lately. Ever since she'd thought about wanting to go back to being a ranger her nostalgia started to kick in. Or maybe it was loneliness. Moving to a new city was always so hard and even now her father hadn't wanted much to do with them. Other than set Bailey up with Miss. Fairweather to work on the zords and weapons and…okay, it's wasn't like being a technical advisor wasn't fun, it always was.

It helped Bailey use her mind critically and scientifically the way she always loved to do things. But…it wasn't like fighting alongside a team trying to save a city.

 _Maybe I can talk to dad about it,_ Bailey thought, bringing her thumb up to bite on her nail. _Or at least let him see how much I helped out with the past rangers when fighting. Or maybe I can call Billy, he may have an idea of what to do._ Not that any of them knew where Billy was, honestly. After Captain Mitchell had told her about Billy's involvement with the Lightspeed Powers she tried to get into contact with him to talk about it.

As far as she knew, from what Mr. Cranston had told her when she called him, he was still at the peace conference and was difficult to get in contact with.

 _Figures._ Bailey walked into hers and Avalon's room and immediately noticed the change in atmosphere of the room. Like electricity was crackling. She must've walked into an invisible brick wall for as soon as she saw her sister she stopped in her tracks.

Uh-oh.

Avalon was bouncing her knees. The only sign she was angry about something. Otherwise, the blank look on her face was eerily calm. A horrifying juxtaposition when looked at too closely or for too long. Bailey briefly went through her mind, trying to figure out what she could've done wrong, or what could've happened that she didn't know about.

Instead, she gave a small smile and asked, "How ya going, sis?"

Avalon took a deep breath and folded her arms across her chest. "Why didn't you tell me Billy helped dad make the powers for the new team of rangers?"

Oh. That. Bailey shrugged. "I didn't think it was a big deal," she said slowly. Was it a big deal in terms of Avalon's relationship with Billy? No, she honestly didn't think so. When it came to the history of the rangers in general, yes. There was a lot to be said about those who truly understood the mechanisms surrounding those that were defending the entire human race. Especially when the technology behind every power set continued to improve on each other.

"You didn't think it was a big deal?"

Avalon's voice edged on dangerous territory. Bailey recognized it from the many times her sister had come across people she disliked, tried to get people to stay away from them, and when people threatened or angered her in some way. But Bailey had never had it used against her before. It was scar, not just due to Avalon's intimidation, but due to the fact their relationship was close enough they could typically talk about things calmly and rationally. Sure, there were arguments here and there, but not to each other.

"Yes, Av, I just got through saying that." Bailey sat down across from her sister on her own bed. "It's not like Billy hasn't worked on a set of powers before." Avalon ran a hand through her hair. She let out a long breath and pressed her fingers together. It didn't take Bailey long to figure out what she was thinking to say. "It doesn't have anything to do with you and Billy breaking up, Av, I don't know why you're so upset."

"Because you're clearly too young to get it, Bay," Avalon replied through gritted teeth.

Bailey frowned. She was tired of hearing that. Tired of constantly being told she was too young, being overlooked because of her age, not taken seriously. Even at the beginning of helping Tommy and the others she was questioned about her mean to help Billy and proved herself quickly. Then she was questioned again when meeting Carter and the others. When was she going to be able to show she knew what she was talking about?

Better yet, when was she going to be taken seriously as a ranger?

"I mean, I know you and Billy broke up, but you're dating Jason now," Bailey said. "So I don't get why it's such a big deal that Billy's doing what he always does and helps with our powers." Bailey ran her hands through her hair. It was _her_ nervous tic. "He's done a lot of good to help this new set of rangers and they're doing a great job. If there's anyone who can take down Vypra and the rest of these monsters—"

"—I don't care about that," Avalon interrupted. She got to her feet and started to leave the room, clenching her hands at her sides.

Bailey frowned. She couldn't help but say with a bit of sarcasm, "Of course you don't, Av. Because everything always has to be about you and what you think."

Avalon whirled around, her eyes widening. "Excuse me? Nothing in my life has been about me. It's been about you."

Now Bailey's eyes widened as well. "When has anything in your life been about me?"

"Um. When we stuck around Angel Grove trying to make a home for ourselves? When I got us an apartment, got us money, got us food—"

"—all illegally!"

"I did that for you! And you know it! I worked hard to make sure that we had a roof over our heads and food to eat."

" _I-lle-ga-lly,"_ Bailey repeated with emphasis on the syllables in the word. "And put us in more danger than you could've handled." She stood up and spread her arms pleadingly. "How many times had you almost gotten killed? How many times have you winded up in the hospital? How many times did I sit at home wondering if I was going to be on my own?" She pretended to count on her fingers. "Too many times, Av! Do you know how scary that is?"

"Do you know how scary the thought is that one day something even worse than where we were could happen?" Avalon spat back. She grabbed onto Bailey's shoulders and shook her. "Do you get it? If I hadn't done what I did, we could be dead by now."

"We'd be dead because of _you_. If you had told someone sooner, maybe we would've been able to get help faster or even would've had a better relationship with mom and dad." Bailey glared at her sister, who glared back at her. "We could've saved ourselves a lot of pain if you hadn't been so stubborn, like you fucking always are and think things are about you when, in actuality, there are other people in the world and you're a selfish bitch!"

With that, Bailey turned on her heel and tried to storm out of the room, stopping as she waited for the door to open. When it moved far enough for her to leave, she took long, angry strides out of the room. Nothing ruined a dramatic exit more than a slow moving, automatic door.

She never remembered being so angry in her life.

* * *

Diabolico tapped the tips of his claws on the hilt of his staff as he looked down on Mariner Bay. A peaceful city that was about to be rocked with Queen Bansheera's return. How much more would it take? Ho much longer until Impus was able to be cared for by his mother? How much longer until they could go out with their own plan?

Vypra made sure everything went to plan. But what was the plan that would take down the rangers? They managed to defeat them at every turn so far, every monster they came up with. Every distraction to make sure they'd be too ragged to take down them. Ad for what? Being beaten at every turn. It was sickening.

Diabolico tightened his grasp around his staff. Now that he had his full body back, he should've been stronger than ever. Should've been able to take on whatever came their way within seconds. But no. Something was holding him back. Or some _one._

He hadn't been able to get back to full strength since he'd helped Rita and Zedd that one time. Trying to break the rangers as best they could; psychologically. Being contacted by the two with Zedd's powers had been a surprise. Being astrally projected to Angel Grove, with a strong enough body to create havoc was the dream he hadn't realized he wanted. Being set aside for thousands of years did nothing to quell his anger.

So that when Rita and Zedd pointed out how he could help them…he jumped at the chance. Killing that woman had been something he hadn't known he needed. The ease of which he'd stabbed her, his blades gliding through her body. The crimson blood splattering on the ground, the way her eyes darkened. And that blue ranger had screamed in agony. The same sort of agony that fueled his powers. Fueled his drive to continue causing as much havoc as he could.

It's what they deserved.

Taking over his home and filling it with their… _filth._ The filth that continued to pile up as the days went on. Every chance he got to cause pain and suffering in their lives was something he took advantage of as soon as he got the chance. Watching them squirm in pain as they lay beneath trapped rubble, blood running down their bodies, broken bones, and split open skin. It made him smile, their screams melodious.

And yet the rangers continued to get in the way. And ruin _everything_ they had planned.

"No matter," Diabolico murmured to himself. He lifted his staff and waved it back and forth in his hands before thrusting it into the air. The sky darkened and clouds formed overhead, the wind picking up to high, dangerous levels.

Lifting his staff higher, she shot energy blasts down into the city and laughed loudly when he saw cars swerve out of the way of the attack, crashing into each other and pedestrians that raced out of the way. It wouldn't be too long until the Power Rangers showed up. Then he could unleash their biggest threat. It had been a long time in the making, something the rangers would never see coming.

"Are you ready?" Diabolico asked the form that appeared by his side.

The silvery ranger stood by him, head hung low, golden chains wrapped around his arms and legs. When he didn't speak, the chains shone brightly, sending an electrical current through him. He screamed and fell to his knees, struggling to break out of the chains that held him. It wasn't until he leaned forward, resting his helmet to the ground that his screams finally died away. Almost imperceptibly, he nodded.

Diabolico nodded back. "Good. I've trained you for this, I trust you to do your worst." He picked up his staff and turned it on its side, reaching out to poke the ranger in the side. "You know what'll happen if you don't."

Again, the silvery ranger nodded.

"Good."

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _I know you guys understand that life stuff continues to get in the way of the time I try to set aside for writing and updating but I feel I continuously must apologize. This time around it wasn't just work getting in the way, but my motivation and inspiration from power rangers fading a little. It happens every now and then and I'm slowly getting back into it. I have some more free time coming soon and I do have big plans for this series as well as the next one._

Thank you all for being so patient with me as my updates have come so infrequently as of late. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas.

 _Thanks to **ChibiDawn23, Son of Whitebeard, and Adela** for reviewing._

 _ **~Av**_


	13. The Titanium Ranger

**.:12:.**

 _The Titanium Ranger_

* * *

Kelsey grinned to herself as she grabbed the scratchy rock in front of her. Even through her gloves she could feel the grip of the rock in her hands. She loved that feeling. Loved knowing that the difference between a successful climb and one that was to hurt later was all on her. Even loved the way her body showed off her battle scars—cuts and scrapes—if she had a particularly nasty fall. And there had been some doozies. Yet, every time she had a minor setback, even a major one, she was right back out there the moment she was given the clean bill of health. Her doctors said it was amazing she hadn't caused too much damage to herself and Kelsey would only grin in response and say back, "There's always next time."

Everyone said she was crazy for it, crazy to want to climb the highest thing, jump the furthest distance, wanted to do anything and everything that would give her an adrenaline rush. Even when she was a kid she'd be the last one home, covered head to toe in mud, blood, and scrapes all with a massive smile. She'd talk animatedly, her hands waving a mile while she ignored the sting of the rubbing alcohol that seemed to permanently douse her legs. So much so that she practically didn't feel any pain anymore.

Unless it was her new ranger powers, Kelsey thought as she brought up her hand to clutch another portion of rock to drag herself upwards. With her other hand now free, she grabbed the harness that at around her waist and moved it aside so that she could clip it into the next ring. She tried to think of what her life was like before being a ranger, but it seemed so distant now. Almost as if it were an entire other life. What had only been a few months stretched into a lifetime; seconds became minutes, minutes became hours, hours became days and so on.

She saw her family more often, that was sure. With daily trainings and monster attacks, she and the other rangers hardly had a chance to see what it was like on the other side. They were celebrities now, making it harder for them to see their old lives. Chad still worked at the Aquarium and had to dodge little kids that begged him for an autograph between his shows. Carter hadn't been able to be in the fire house without his co-workers making a joke about him swooping in to save the day—not that they hadn't done it before with his track record of rescues and his dedication to the job. Dana, Joel, and herself were the ones that seemed to come out of it unscathed.

Though Dana typically kept to herself, Kelsey had grown to find a great friend in her. It helped they were the only female rangers on the team, with Avalon and Bailey being younger than them. They had the experience of being rangers, the understanding of what it meant to give your life up for others and to continued being unfazed by strange monsters that popped up habitually. She and Dana worked hard to keep their spirits up and understand what it meant to have the new sense of responsibility thrust on their shoulders. And soon, Kelsey found they weren't so different from each other. Yes, upon their first meeting Kelsey though Dana was very frigid and stoic but found she was just professional. She took her job with the government seriously and made sure all her work was done before she started to play while Kelsey was the opposite, all work and no play made her dull.

Even with that opposite they found themselves giggling with each other every night over ice cream or popcorn. Their conversations ranged from the other boys on their team—did they know what was going on with Joel and Miss. Fairweather—and their lives outside of being rangers. Dana's, as the pink ranger pointed out—wasn't so different from what it was now; working for the government, working hard to be everything her father wanted her to be.

Kelsey, on the other hand, hadn't had much of a life before being a ranger. Sure, she was a stunter, an extreme sport enthusiast. A professional mountain climber. What people didn't know was that it wasn't a job that paid so much money. Yes, she had photo ops and appearances, interviews, and endorsements but it didn't pay a lot of money when equipment was so expensive. Kelsey was slowly starting to find herself running low on money and rent. The new power ranger stuff couldn't have come sooner. It helped they were being paid for it, official government work and all but…

Not even that could change how alive she felt when rock climbing and stunting. Kelsey finally dragged herself to the top of the mountain and placed her hands on her hips. She took in a deep breath, chest swelling and allowed her to take in the crisp, clean air. Her eyes roved over Mariner Bay, the city resembling that of a child's toy from so far up. If she squinted, she could see the glittering ocean in the distance. Any moment now a monster could start attacking and they'd swoop into battle. But right now, everything was peaceful and she loved it.

Kelsey turned at the sound of a light grunt and watched as Bailey pulled herself up the side of the mountain face, standing up and swinging her arms over her head in a graceful stretch. "Hey, you did a good job," Kelsey said with a wide smile.

A small one was returned before Bailey dropped her arms. "I've always loved to climb."

"But you could never get anyone else to go with you, right?" Kelsey laughed a hearty laugh. "Yeah, I get that. Everyone was always so scared to actually climb once they saw where I wanted to go."

"Well, I meant I was always too busy," Bailey said with a light laugh. "In Australia I was always doing school work and stuff and when I moved to Angel Grove…" she trailed off, her smile fading from her face like melting wax the moment her sister came to mind. They were fighting, they hardly ever fought but when they did…Bailey shook her head. How did Avalon not get it? How did she not understand what Bailey was trying to say?

 _How come I can't understand her? _Bailey asked herself. She frowned, turning her attention away from Kelsey to look over the city. How many times had they argued over Avalon's reasonings for them to stay on their own? A million and one? Two? And still they were miscommunicating. Or else it was their own anger they were throwing on each other.

Avalon was always a bit angry, Bailey knew. But all the same she knew she wasn't. She was sad and scared. Sad that their lives had turned out the way it had; that their parents had given up on them like many other people had. Scared to know what was coming next. Buts he had to keep appearances to make sure Bailey didn't worry. But Bailey was just mad. Mad she wasn't being listened to and had all of her decisions made for her.

With a sigh, Bailey closed her eyes and, like Kelsey had done moments before, took a deep breath and allowed the wind that blew around them to swell her lungs. She held it for a long moment then released the breath, releasing her stress and tension as she did so. She was surprised to find a tear come to her eye as she did so, pain welling up in her chest.

She was young, so young. She shouldn't have had to carry so much pain and stress inside. _Maybe that's what Av meant,_ Bailey thought. _In her trying to protect me._ Maybe she didn't know as much of the world as she thought.

"What's up?" Kelsey asked, gently laying her hand on Bailey's shoulder.

Wiping at her eyes, Bailey shook her head. She regained her composure fast. When she opened her eyes, they we dry. Ready to take on the world and everything that came with it once more. "Nothing," She said quickly. "It's just…you and Chad are both trying to help me…"

Kelsey let out a little laugh. "Is that so wrong?"

"No. But…before you guys, I've never seen a team filled with rangers that had only just met each other and got along so well." She ran a hand through her hair. "The first team…they'd been friends for years and every time someone new came in, they were welcomed with open arms. The second team, the Zeo team did the same, even when we lost one of our own,"—Bailey suddenly found herself choked up at the mention of Evie Caulder—"the team after that, the Turbo team. They didn't like each other at first, only having just met when they were thrown into being rangers learned how to be a team. But you guys…you're a team from the get go." She started to add _'Just like me and Av'_ but didn't say anything more.

Kelsey smiled and continued to rub her shoulder before looping her arm around her. Instead of telling her something that would've been hollow, that would've been everything she'd ever heard before. Instead, she continued to hold the younger girl, standing in silence as she silently tried to figure things out. It was the same she'd done with Dana, after she found Dana back in her room, not long after Carter had tried to console her.

Dana's head was bent over her work, her lips a hard, thin line as she concentrated on filling out an incident form. Kelsey had thought to tell her the cliched 'everything would be okay' but quickly decided against it. Instead, she put her arm around Dana's shoulders and waited for her friend to relax against her, resting her head against Kelsey's shoulder. The two sat in silence for a long time—a half hour tops, the quietest Kelsey had ever been—before Dana abruptly stood up and pushed back her chair, saying they should get started on making dinner for the team as it was their turn.

And yet, Kelsey knew from the look on Dana's face that everything would be okay.

Just as it would be now.

"We're going to be late," is all Kelsey said.

Bailey nodded. The last thing they needed was to be late for another training session.

Besides, as it was, she was already starting to feel better.

* * *

Bailey wasn't surprised to find that Avalon nor Jason were with the other rangers when they arrived at the training session. Avoidance was the best way to handle things, Bailey reminded herself. It was the Mitchell way. She couldn't help but look at her father standing ramrod straight nearby, watching the training session like a hawk.

Standing next to Miss. Fairweather, Bailey continuously, nervously adjusted the earpiece that sat in her ear. Either her ears were too small, or her glasses were too large to keep it in place. It kept sliding out and falling to the ground. Miss. Fairweather gave her a sympathetic look before starting the program.

Carter, who stood in the middle of the practice room placed an electrode to his neck and wrist as he had been instructed to. Two more sat on his forehead, he waited patiently as a morpher was placed around his wrist. A morpher that had silver and blue accents, shinning brightly under the lights around them. Bailey had been surprised when she arrived and saw their training session for that day was to test another morpher.

The rangers had been rangers for a few months by that point and had been doing a phenomenal job of taking on every monster that came their way. What was the point of having another morpher made? Unless they were expecting something to happen? Being prepared and all that.

 _But this isn't the bloody Boy Scouts,_ Bailey reminded herself. _This is real life and real life is aggro._ While working along side Miss. Fairweather, she had alluded to the morpher every now and then but continued to have Bailey work on their weapons. It was the best placement for her. Engineering and studying the power sources within the weapons that had been created was what she lived for. Seeing the human technologies compared to the Alienware she'd seen from Zordon and Alpha was a puzzle she enjoyed taking apart and upgrading.

"Did I miss it? Am I late?" Joel's voice broke through the tense silence. Bailey lifted her head and leaned towards the other rangers, seeing Joel quietly slip in line alongside Chad, arranging his head so that he hid from sight. Still, Miss. Fairweather couldn't help but roll her eyes as she shook her head.

"All systems are ready," She said. Captain Mitchell nodded to her and she reached out, pressing a finger into a button on the panel in front of her. Then she nodded to Carter.

Carter nodded back and pressed his fingers against the morpher on his wrist. "Titanium Power!" He called. The second the words came from his mouth, there was a bright flash of light and Carter's screams filled the air. His body, standing as rigid in front of them as the statue, flashed with light as electricity coursed through his body.

Bailey flinched and looked away. Carter's paralysis released his body and he started to jerk back and forth. Kelsey and Dana let out shrieks of surprise, covering their mouths with their hands while Chad's eyes widened in fight. Joel was the only one to stare in awe, leaning closer to see what was going on. Carter's body continued to shake, as the seconds passed his body took on the silvery suit that came from the morpher. Finally, the electricity stopped, and Carter collapsed to his knees, gasping for air.

Joel immediately launched into action, racing over to his fallen friend, grabbing him by the arm to pull him to his feet. His teammates were only a second behind him while Miss. Fairweather grabbed the microphone sitting next to her and cried, "Carter, are you okay?"

"I got you, buddy." Joel grasped Carter's arm and heaved him to his feet, slinging his arm around Carter's lower back. Carter leaned heavily into Joel's side as he gasped.

Dana hovered by his side, gently pressing his fringe from his face, mopping away the sweat that had appeared on his forehead. Then she took his face in her hands and turned it this way and that, studying his face for any sort of pain he was trying to hide. Carter looked her in the eye and gave a gentle nod, indicating she was okay. Dana swallowed hard and nodded back before gently lowering her hands from his face, clasping them together in front of her, chewing her lower lip with worry.

"Carter?" Miss. Fairweather repeated, voice growing shrill.

"Yeah." Carter swallowed hard. "I'm okay."

Bailey let out a sigh of relief and glanced at her father. He hadn't moved or changed his expression the entire time Carter was being tortured. He merely continued to watch the rangers in front of him as they made sure their leader was okay. His lips twitched, making his mustache dance.

Bailey would've laughed had the moment been funny. At the moment she could only feel the cold grips of fear holding her feet still, it trailing its fingers down her back. She shuddered, goosebumps appearing on her arms. Carter could've been hurt and her father just stood there…?

Miss. Fairweather seemed to have had the same thought as she said in a harsh whisper, "I don't think we should continue testing the titanium powers." Her fingers curled into her palms when Captain Mitchell cast her a dismissive glance. "The circuitry is too powerful for an ordinary human."

"It would've been fantastic," Captain Mitchell said in response.

"Yes, it truly would have."

"Diabolico already has the original," Captain Mitchell pointed out with a sudden fire in his voice. "This copy, if we can figure out how to use it against him—"

"—it can't be used if there's nothing compatible for it. Carter was almost _killed_."

"We were monitoring his vitals—"

"Monitoring and seeing the actual results are two different things, Captain. I'm not going to let these guys get hurt over a far-off dream we're trying to complete." She took in a deep breath to steady herself. "Captain, the original Titanium morpher was stolen and re-creating it isn't something that we can do to just pretend it hasn't happened."

"Preventative measures—"

Miss. Fairweather looked her boss in the eye and threw her shoulders back. "I understand there's nothing more you want than to take these demons down and finally bring peace to Mariner Bay. But you really need to think at what cost you'll do it."

"I will do _anything_ to make sure this city is safe," Captain Mitchell declared. "I'm not going to lose anyone else. Not after…" he broke himself off. Silence hung heavy between the two before he repeated, "I will do anything."

Bailey's eyebrows came together as she heard it. _Finally_ heard it. Heard it from him rather than what she'd been told. He didn't care about anything other than his job. Other than succeeding. Being the best. She knew he had been a workaholic but hoped to bring his attention to what was more important. If it couldn't be happened before then…why would it happen now.

 _Anything._

Bailey sucked in a deep breath and glared. She pressed her lips together, counted backwards from 100, did simple multiplication in her head, anything to keep calm. But the second she heard the words, she knew she was a goner. Unlike Avalon, who seemed to get ticked at the drop of a hat, Bailey was much more reserved. But now, she was _pissed_.

Her heart had already hurt from the constant pain they'd been through, but now it broke.

Miss. Fairweather tilted her head upwards. "You've got your wish," she said to her boss before turning on her heel and storming from the training area.

Bailey did the same, slipping out, completely invisible in her father's eyes as she finally realized she always had been.

* * *

Vypra smiled as she overlooked Mariner Bay. How touching, she thought. To watch the residents go about their day, not knowing what was about to come to them. Her upper lip curled as she watched them. There were so many smiles being shared. How sickening.

Vypra held up her hand and sent out a fireball towards the group closest to her. It exploded with precision, the shockwave knocking the further off their feet, engulfing those that were closer. Their bodies thrashed around in a wild dance of pain as they frantically tried to remove the pain. Those that werk nocked clear lay prone on the ground, trampled by those who sprinted for safety. The ground started to quake as the shockwave of the fireball and ensuing explosion rocked the area. The buildings that lined the streets started to sway.

"Ha!" Vypra threw out another fireball, this time slamming it into the side of the building. Glass and steel ripped and twisted apart, showering down on the ground below them, striking those that took the wrong path to safety, propelling themselves further into danger.

With a laugh of triumph, Vypra headed to the next target of attack, an abandoned warehouse filled with flammable chemicles. "How sad," she said with a pout. "You'd think by now they would learn where to put their valuables." She lifted her hand, blue fire dancing around her fingers like a graceful ballerina. "I'll just have to remind them!" She started to thrust her arm forward but was cut off by a sudden shot of energy that knocked her backwards. With a scowl, Vypra noted Bailey walking her way, holding onto a blaster. "You again?" She demanded.

"Just get out f here before anything happens, Vypra," Bailey warned her. "I'm not in the mood for this, today."

"Are the puny power rangers starting to get tired?" Vypra taunted. Then she looked Bailey up and down. "You're not formidable enough to be my foe. Get out of here before I change my mind." She waved her hand, lazily, towards the exit, but Bailey didn't move.

Instead, she continued to hold her grip around the blaster that was now an extension of her arm. One was closed behind her glasses, keeping her gaze steady on Vypra. "Mate, you picked the wrong day to do this," she declared. But she hoped Vypra didn't see her hand shaking. It was the last thing Bailey had expected to happen since leaving the Aqua Base.

She was angry and just wanted to get away as far as possible as fast as possible. With no destination in mind, she went to the city, walking along and peering lazily into shop fronts, wondering what to do. The truth had hit her in the face and she wanted nothing more than for it to be a lie.

The truth hurt.

People let you down.

She understood that now.

It was a tough pill to swallow.

Bailey heard the explosions and gotten the alert that something was going on in the city and raced after the last known source as fast as she could. She may not be a ranger anymore, but the will to help people would never go away. So, Bailey ran until she found Vypra and stood her ground, mentally screaming at herself to figure out what to do next.

Vypra's eyebrows lowered when she saw Bailey wasn't moving. Instead, she picked up her sword and held it high overhead. "No matter," She drawled. "I'll just destroy you myself." With a hiss, she launched herself towards Bailey, who continued to hold her ground.

"Not so fast, Vypra!" Carter called as he and the other rangers, morphed, raced into battle.

Bailey lowered her arms and watched as they raced forward to take on Vypra and the Batlings. They were taken down with ease, strong punches and kicks that launched the Battlings into the walls behind them, scattering them like bowling balls. After a moment of hesitation, Bailey threw herself into battle as well. With perfectly aimed shots from her blaster she knocked down the five closest to her. Racing forward, she ran up a small stack of crates and leapt forward. Mid-air, she twisted around and flipped, landing in the middle of a group of Battlings, shattering them.

With a smirk, Bailey continued to use her martial arts training to take on the Battlings that dared to come close. Her fists and elbows ached with pain over each strike into the enemies. She'd grown accustomed to the extra durability ranger powers had given her when she was still in commission, but it wasn't going to stop her.

Her anger and frustration kept her going.

It also blinded her. For every Battling she took down, another one would come up in her blind spot and knock her aside. She kicked one in the front, she was kicked in the back, sent sprawling to the ground. Flipping over, Bailey lifted her foot, reading to kick at the Battling before it was sent flying by a blaster shot into the back. Bailey gasped in surprise and looked up at Chad, who hurried to her side.

"You shouldn't be here," he said, grabbing onto her.

"I needed to help," Bailey protested.

"You need to get to safety!" Chad just had her to her feet when all hell broke loose.

Carter, who had been holding off Vypra on his own, cornered her as he cried, "It's over, Vypra!" He pointed his sword directly at her. "Give up now."

With a mere smile, Vypra thrust her sword towards the ceiling. "Not until you've met your match, rangers!" She cried then laughed a loud, long, maniacal laugh as the ceiling ripped open with a cloud of silver energy.

The miasma of energy continued to spread across the ceiling, sending out bolts of lightning that streaked down around them. Chad grabbed onto Bailey and moved them behind a stack of crates, out of harms' way. Carter, Dana, Kelsey, and Joel, who were stuck in the middle of the field, cried out as the lightning rained down around them. They fell to the ground, trying, in vain, to find some sort of shelter.

"You guys!" Chad called. "Are you alright?"

"We're fine!" Carter shouted back. "Get Bailey out of here!"

"We can't leave you," Bailey protested. Everything in her screamed not to. That wasn't what being a ranger was about. You didn't leave a teammate behind. _They're not your teammates,_ a voice in the back of her head reminded her. _You're not a ranger anymore._

"That's an order!"

Chad's grasp tightened on Bailey's shoulders as he started to get up and run to safety. But the silver energy continued to rain down and as they watched, a figure started to energy. Vypra continued to laugh, it now becoming shrill and hysterical as the figure slowly lowered to the ground, arms and legs bound in gold chains.

When the light faded, a silver ranger stood in front of them. With a battle cry, he brought up his hands and broke free of the chains with ease.

"The Titanium Ranger," Captain Mitchell's voice whispered through their headsets.

"it can't be, Carter gasped.

"Who are you?" Dana demanded.

"I'm your worst nightmare, the Titanium Ranger!"

"But how?" Kelsey asked. "We were just using its morpher?" She then noticed him walking closer to herself and her friend and cried in a voice, shaky but filled with power, "Stop right there!"

"We don't want any trouble," Joel added.

"But you got it!" The Titanium Ranger growled.

He pulled out a morpher and within seconds sent the rangers to the ground with strong blasts. He wasted no time attacking them next. Chad let go of Bailey and ran into save his friends as the Titanium ranger made quick work of the Lightspeed Rescue Rangers.

With ease, he threw them around, kicked them, flipped them, and sent them flying. The group broke apart as the Titanium Ranger set his sights on each one. Bailey crouched down behind the crates as she watched, eyes wide with fear and awe. Her fingers twitched, itching for her to run out to help them but knew she'd be torn apart. If they were being knocked silly like rag dolls with their powers, then she would be torn limb from limb without a care in the world.

"Turbo Wild Hammer!"

Bailey looked over as Avalon leapt over the fallen rangers with her turbo weapon at the ready. The moment she landed on the ground in a crouch, she timed it with the swing of her hammer. The resulting shockwave knocked the Titanium ranger backwards and shake the foundation of the warehouse around them. Chunks of the ceiling started to fall, separating them from the evil ranger.

"Come on!" Avalon shouted. "Let's go!" Then, almost as if sensing her sister was there, Avalon's head swiveled to the side and her helmet locked onto Bailey. "Bay!"

"Av!" Bailey called back.

"I got her," Bailey heard Chad's voice. "Just go!"

In a chaotic manner, the rangers hurried their way out of the falling warehouse with the Titanium Ranger on their heels, walking a slow, deliberate speed.

Carter clenched his hand into a fist. "Looks like we'll have to take are of this the hard way," he said. The rangers all summoned their weapons and brought them together to form a large blaster. The Titanium Ranger pulled out his blaster and pulled on a few knobs and ends until it elongated into another weapon. "Fire!"

With the combined attack of the Lightspeed ranger's attack and Avalon's turbo wild hammer, a plume of energy shot towards the Titanium Ranger. With a cruel laugh, he absorbed the power from the blast and shot it back towards the rangers. Carter and Chad jumped in front of Bailey as they were all hit by the blast.

Bailey's scream was silent compared to the roaring of the fiery explosion that surrounded them. Even with her eyes closed she could see a rainbow of colors. Her feet left the ground and she flew, twisting and turning through the hot breeze before landing heavily on the ground with a painful slam. All breath escaped her in a quiet 'whoosh'.

Bailey's ears rang, not with a high-pitched squeal but with a low hum. It drowned out the other noise, making it muffled, like a kid holding their hands over their ears to ward off a scary sound.

Bailey heard, through Carter's helmet, Captain Mitchell calling them back. "Carter, break off the attack. Get out of there. Now!" Then she heard the Titanium Ranger's evil laughter before everything went black.

* * *

 **A/N:** Finally, back to some action! I loved writing this chapter, what did you guys think?

Thanks to **ChibiDawn23, Son of Whitebeard, and Adela** for reviewing.

 **~Av**


	14. Troubles

**.:13:.**

 _Troubles_

* * *

"Bailey? Bay! Is she going to be okay?"

"She's going to be fine, Av."

"You don't know that!"

"She's in the best hands here."

"Get out of my way! I need to be sure she's okay!"

Jason reached up his hands and pressed against Avalon's shoulders. He clamped down as hard as he could, struggling to hold the frantic orange ranger still. Despite her size, his girlfriend was able to jostle him a few times before she finally stopped, hanging her head. "Av, I'm looking right at her," he insisted, jerking his head towards the window that sat beside them. Avalon followed his gaze, her face crumpling into an expression of intense concern. Bailey lay quietly on her side in a bed in the medical wing with doctors and nurses continuously moving in and out of the room. "She's fine."

Avalon nodded and turned away from the hospital room. She brought her hands up to run over her face, then spotted Dana coming up the hall towards them. Jason moved his grasp down to Avalon's wrist, holding onto her as tightly as he could. He felt her tense, could see the snarl coming to her face and the fire that shot through her eyes. Nevertheless, she managed to keep quiet when Dana walked up. She peered into the window that led to Bailey's room before taking in a breath and rounding back her shoulders.

"Bailey is doing fine," she said. "Her vitals are okay."

Jason let out a breath of relief. He wasn't the closest to Bailey out of all the rangers, he hadn't spent much time with her by himself, but she was still his former teammate sand someone who he greatly cared for. "Was there any lasting damage?"

She shook her head. "No lasting damage. I'm not sure if it's due to the physiology of her body because of her recent connections with what has powered your past ranger teams, but there wasn't anything that I'd be concerned about in her scans. I went as far as to do an MRI and a CAT since she hasn't woken up yet, but they were fine. I believe her adrenaline levels had dramatically spiked, even higher than they would have when facing Vypra." She folded her arms and said, "I'm glad she's okay."

"Thank you," Jason said. "We are, too."

Avalon shook her head. "That's bullshit," she murmured.

Dana's eyes widened, lips parting in surprise. Her eyebrows flew upwards and she stammered, "I-I beg your pardon?"

"You can't even drop your 'perfect little girl' façade for more than a second," Avalon continued, using air quotes around the words. "Dad's had you so…robotic that you can't even fake any concern for her." She pointed towards the window. "Dana, that's your sister. _I'm_ your sister. You used to know that. But all you do is try to keep up the perfect veil over your perfect life."

Dana's face suddenly became cloudy with fury. "My life's not perfect," she snapped back.

"You sure act like it."

"I really care about what's happened to Bailey in there! Had I not, I wouldn't have made sure that every scan has been done to ensure that there hasn't been any lasting damage. That's not how things work around here, we don't usually waste our resources like that." Avalon lifted a smug eyebrow and Dana's cheeks bloomed with color. "That's not what I meant!" Dana cried with more vehemence that Avalon had ever heard from her.

Even Jason couldn't help but blink in surprise.

He didn't know Dana from the next stranger, only having heard of her familial relation to Avalon and Bailey when she had arrived in Angel Grove. _Years_ ago. He hadn't expected things between them to change so drastically. But then again…going from being a ranger to nothing…that was just as drastic. A sudden twinge of pain struck Jason's shoulder and he grimaced, reaching up his hand to rub the knot that suddenly seemed to form between his neck and shoulder.

How many times had he woken up from a deep slumber with a shooting pain so hard that he may as well have been stabbed through the stomach with one of Goldar's blades. Struck by whatever electrical current the monsters of the Machine Empire could send his way. How many times had he been staring off into space and it was like he could see the struggles all the previous gold rangers had gone through? Replayed Evie's death, replayed Billy's struggles to hold onto the power, replayed his own struggles as he tried hard to control the power before losing it?

And that was just his ranger life. His personal life had been even harder. He had a relationship with Emily that he thought was solid, but couldn't manage through the secrets he had to keep from her. How he had been MIA for _days_ because of being kidnapped by Divatox. How he'd been tortured by her, manhandled by her, then turned evil by Maligore.

"We have protocols that we use here. Yes, I do follow those protocols. Yes, my father put those protocols in place. And, yes, I do follow what my father has told me to do. But he is the one that's leading everything around here and I have to follow him not only as his daughter but as his co-worker. He leads our team the same way that Zordon has led yours."

Avalon blinked. "Then when are you going to stop calling him 'your father'?" She lifted a hand. "Or, maybe it was that he'd never been mine."

Dana opened her mouth once more then let out a frustrated grunt, which was very much unlike her. Avalon glanced at her little sister once more before finally walking away. Jason gave Dana a weak smile, rubbing his neck with his hand. Massaged his muscles as they continued to grow tighter and tighter. "I know she's been really…" he let out a long breath. "She's usually not like that," he said. Though couldn't help but immediately remember how the orange ranger had been when they first met. Almost as prickly then.

Dana, on the other hand, didn't look convinced. "No, I get it," she said. Then she hesitated, eyebrows coming together as she studied Jason. "Do you think you have some time to talk?" She asked.

"Me?" Jason pointed to himself. It wasn't that he wouldn't do it, of course he would. But they barely knew each other, if there was anything she'd want to talk about, it made more sense if it were to one of her own team. People she trusted.

Understanding his hesitation, Dana added, "I'd like to speak to someone who's a little impartial to everything that's going on," she said. "If that's okay with you. You've been a ranger for a long time and understand how to navigate everything that comes with it. I'd be grateful if you could give me some insight into navigating all of this."

Jason nodded, dropping his hand to his side. "I'd be glad to speak with you." He noticed the difference in himself when he said it. Like he was a ranger again. Like he was the leader of the team. He missed that feeling.

* * *

"Alright," Captain Mitchell said as soon as the door to his office closed. Miss. Fairweather stood to his side while Carter, Joel, Kelsey, and Chad waited for Captain Mitchell's next orders. "As I've briefed you when I first made you aware, Diabolico has the Titanium morpher and the power of the Titanium power ranger. We have got to get it back. Fast. The copy that we have, our recreation of the morpher isn't strong enough compared to Diabolico's hold over the power source."

"But sir…" Carter paused, licked his lips. "How did Diabolico get the power?"

Joel glanced at Carter, eyebrows rising when he saw how brazenly the red ranger was speaking to their mentor. Carter was the one who followed the rules, Joel was the one who spoke his mind…and got punished for speaking his mind. It took some time for him to realize that being a ranger was serious business. He knew when it was best to say something and when he had to listen.

Now was the time to listen.

Captain Mitchell's mustache twitched as he thought of how to answer. His chest swelled and fell in the seconds that passed. Joel's gaze flickered over to Miss. Fairweather, who immediately turned away. Despite the seriousness of the situation—there was another ranger out there, a ranger who was better than _them—_ he couldn't help but smile. Miss. Fairweather could pretend all she wanted about not being interested in Joel, he knew he had her. They just had to wait for the right time to have things work out between them.

And in the middle of a rampage with a very strong ranger was no such time.

"That is a conversation to have another day," Captain Mitchell finally said.

"But sir," Kelsey protested. "If we don't know what we're up against, how can we beat him? If we knew how Diabolico got the Titanium morpher, maybe we can use that to make sure they don't get _our_ morphers, too."

"They're not going to get your morphers," Miss. Fairweather said calmly. Though the look she shot Captain Mitchell let Joel see right through her. She was worried. Or angry. Angry about something…Captain Mitchell took in her look and closed his eyes before nodding.

"Miss. Fairweather is right," he agreed. "Diabolico isn't going to come after your morphers when he's got the Titanium power." He started to pace, his hands clasped behind his back as they always were. From where Joel was sitting, he could see Captain Mitchell's hands shaking violently. The reality suddenly struck Joel then, a bolt of lightning that struck him through the gut.

Captain Mitchell was worried about what was going to happen. They'd worked hard to get where they were with their powers, but now there was another ranger out there who could beat them and…maybe they weren't ready. Captain Mitchell cleared his throat and said, "There are many ways we have to defeat this new threat. I've had it in my back pocket since the Titanium power was initially stolen." He motioned towards Miss. Fairweather, who nodded and took a step forward, adjusting her glasses.

"They're called the V-Lancers," she explained. "When activated in battle, they'll be long-sword weapons that will give you a boost of power as well as keep the Titanium ranger from getting too close to you to accrue any more damage."

Joel's eyes shifted back and forth. "And?" he asked. Chad smacked him on the arm while Miss. Fairweather pursed her lips. "What? There's always some sort of catch to these things. We get the new weapons, they've got some sort of an extra mode or something, but we can't use them because it hasn't been tested and we may blow ourselves up, right?"

Captain Mitchell and Miss. Fairweather exchanged glances with each other. They were silent long enough that Joel knew he was right. Nevertheless, he waited for them to tell him he was wrong. That it wouldn't be like every other fight they'd run into. Waited for some sort of good pep-talk that would have them running off and able to save the day.

But no, nothing.

"This is something that was created specifically to battle against the Titanium ranger," Miss. Fairweather said. "If we release it too soon—"

"You already made us retreat from him!" Carter cried, raising his voice. "The best we can do is show him we're not going to be beaten!"

"He would've destroyed us without thinking twice," Joel added. As soon as the words left his mouth, he shrank back, hoping his outburst wouldn't have been noticed alongside Carter's. If anyone would take the heat off him, it'd be Carter.

Captain Mitchell drew himself up to his full height, eyes narrowing seconds before he slammed his fist onto the table. "This is serious!" He cried. "There have been other rangers before, other evil rangers. Their powers had all come from the same or similar source, their powers had not been created by…" his shoulders slumped. "By themselves. Miss. Fairweather and I created these powers along with a young man named Billy Cranston. He was the one who spearheaded the Project Lightspeed, making me understand the importance of having protection for the city. Once I knew there was the chance that the demons could return I knew Billy's worries were concretely founded. The Titanium power was the last that had been created by Billy and was the first to be stolen."

Kelsey, the one who was the most brazen out of all of them, Joel could admit—who else would want to rock climb with little to no harness or other safety measures?—was the one to ask, "Sir…don't you think we can beat him?"

Captain Mitchell lowered his gaze.

"I'm not sure," he said honestly.

* * *

Diabolico laughed to himself as he watched the Titanium ranger continued to squirm before him. Oh, how he loved to hear the tortured cries that came from his lips. How he writhed on the ground, back arching as he desperately tried to get away. And still, Diabolico stood over him, holding his scepter high as he watched.

"To think, had I known it would be so easy, I would've done this years ago," Diabolico murmured to Vypra, who stood beside him. He tilted his head, sending another wave of painful energy into the Titanium ranger once more from his staff.

"What about when you took down that ranger's mother?" Vypra asked. She lifted an eyebrow to gaze at her cohort. How many times had he lautered how easy it was for him to psychologically damage and control the rangers from killing one of their parents? Every time she failed to destroy the rangers, she was sure. It had bene years ago. And he hadn't done anything of point since then. What was he bragging about?

"That was a different kind of battle to win," Diabolico replied. He curled his fingers into his palms. "I wasn't as strong then. I didn't have my powers and abilities. Rita and Zedd…" he sucked in a deep breath. "They didn't know how to handle what I'd give them, and they failed. I'm not going to fail."

The Titanium ranger continued to scream, now rolling back and forth along the ground. Diabolico stamped the bottom of his cane to the ground and the screaming stopped. The Titanium ranger stretched on out on the ground, spread eagle as he fought to catch his breath, chest heaving. Diabolico walked over to the Titanium ranger and ripped his helmet off. The young man that lay on the ground, eyes half-lidded, stared sightlessly up at Diabolico. Blood dripped from his nose, curling down his cheeks towards his ears, dripped to the ground.

And still, Diabolico stood over him on the cool, foggy ground as if he were nothing but a bug waiting to be squished. He should just end it then and there. To prove a point. To deliver a message. No. It wasn't the right time. There was more they needed to do.

"With your new powers, this city will soon be ours," Diabolico murmured. He nodded to Vypra. "There's more that needs to be done to ensure Queen Bansheera's return."

"The rangers fight, and they'll be destroyed, if they run, the city is ours." Vypra grinned, unable to contain her excitement. "Either way they choose, we win."

"He's mastered the powers of the Titanium morpher and now we'll use those powers to take back our homeland," Diabolico agreed.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _Man, this Titanium ranger stuff is difficult for these guys, isn't it? It really does make things harder for the Mitchell family, but it can't be easy knowing there's so many secrets that had be kept. I deeply apologize this chapter was so short compared to how long of a wait it was for it to be updated, but the next one certainly makes up for it._

Anyway, this first arc with end with chapter 15 so the pacing and some other stuff will come in after the next chapter. I apologize for how slowly I've been updating, but when I have days off work I want to spend some time to myself and don't get to write as much.

 _Thanks to **ChibiDawn23 and Adela** for reviewing._

 _ **~Av**_


	15. Hurt

**.:14:.**

 _Hurt_

* * *

Dana wrung her fingers together, chewing her lower lip. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm starting to wonder if this was something I really could handle," Dana said as she walked alongside Jason, the two strolling through the park. Her eyes slid over the faces of the families that took in the beautiful day for a picnic. They all looked so happy, when was the last time she was as happy with her family? Shaking the nagging thoughts away, Dana glanced at Jason, waiting to see some sort of recognition on his face, knowing he'd felt the same. But his face remained stoic, the same way it'd since they started. "My dad seems to have a lot of faith in me and we've been doing a lot as a team, I've been improving. It's just…with everything else, the pressure is really starting to get to me."

"That's bound to happen," Jason said, his first words since they started. Dana watched as he chuckled, sliding his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "It's hard to balance school, work, social life, family life, any responsibility you have. Add saving the world to that and you've got what is a classic recipe for disaster."

"But you managed to do it," Dana pointed out. Jason's eyebrows rose. Her tone was almost accusatory, the way her eyes narrowed at him didn't help to disprove it either. He realized then, she was very similar to Captain Mitchell, through what little time he'd spent with Avalon's and Bailey's father. Tommy, Billy, and Kimberly got to know him better during their trip to Australia.

"With help from my team." Jason tossed his glance her way. "There's always something that comes up, where you have to rely on those you're working with. Always a monster that's going to be targeting you specifically one time or another."

"Yeah, we've had our fair share of that." Dana smiled a small smile. The adventures, the power that surged through her when she morphed, that was the fun part. That was the part that made her feel she was more than a paramedic. More than the tight-lipped, responsible woman that followed every order she was given. "More than once. We haven't had our powers too long, about five or six months now, and it always feels great."

"And are you working as a team?" Jason asked. At Dana's hesitation, Jason tilted his head back to glance at the sky. How funny, he was in a completely different part of California, and yet everything looked the same around him. One sky, one destiny, he supposed. No matter where he went or what he did, rangering was going to show up one way or another. No sense in trying to get away from it all. No sense in trying to ignore everything; no matter how hard he tried to ignore the nightmares of Maligore that continued to plague him. "Silence isn't the best answer to questions like that. I assume you're having some troubles."

"Isn't that what happened with you guys? When you started out as rangers?"

"No. But, we had the advantage of being friends for a long time. Since we were in first grade, or something like that. Then Tommy came and he quickly became a part of our team." Jason paused. "I should be transparent with you, you're asking me for my help and I'm not. Tommy was sent to destroy our team."

Dana gasped in surprise. To _destroy_ them? She'd seen her father's case files on the rangers, past and present. It was her duty, to study the ones who had every ability to become a ranger. Her special task. She'd read each of the other ranger's case files so closely she knew more about them than they knew about her. She knew Kelsey was poor, knew Joel's father was the one who put the love of aviation in him long before he passed, knew Chad was one of seven children and worked hard for everything he had, knew Carter was a loner who had a high sense of duty. And what about her? She had an extensive medical background that came in handy whenever one of them got injured.

 _And family secrets out the wazoo,_ Dana thought. It was only a matter of time until someone at the AquaBase managed to say something to the other rangers about Ryan. Not to mention Avalon's absolute contempt at having her around and with Bailey in the hospital…Dana couldn't blame them. She knew their budding relationship had been nipped in the bud as soon as they'd spent so much time apart, grew up, lived different lives. Having one of their team try to destroy them couldn't have helped.

"He didn't want to. At first, he was just a regular guy like the rest of us. He was new to town, we were just becoming friends, and then Rita—"

"—Rita Repulsa?" Dana broke in.

"You've heard about her?"

"Couldn't miss her. As soon as the monsters started to show up in Angel Grove, dad spent all his time in his office, studying monsters and new threats to the Earth." She'd even seen the news coverage of that projection of Rita over Angel Grove. She didn't know anyone who hadn't. "But Rita got to him?"

Jason nodded. He slowed to a stop at a park bench and sat down. Folding his arms, he slouched towards the bottom of the seat, bounced his foot up and down. He used to be someone who could sit and meditate for hours on end, not moving a muscle. Now he found himself unable to sit still for longer than a few minutes, always having to move at least one body part. Always having to make sure he felt… _alive_ in some way.

"Rita used a Power Coin and her own magic powers to turn her into an evil ranger. He was sent to destroy us, and he nearly succeeded until we broke her magic hold over him. After that, Tommy managed to work hard in being a great ranger and soon he was the leader of our team and almost every faction after that." Jason smiled. "We all joked, before he retired, that he was going to take all of our colors. He was green, white, and red for a little while."

"You all retired, too," Dana pointed out.

"Mhm. I had left for a short while to help a family member who was sick. Then I came back as the gold ranger and I left again. I needed to move on, I'd done everything I could do as a ranger. And it was hard, it's always hard. You have to rely on your team, but also face the fact that, every day, they could be gone. Destroyed by a wayward attack we may move too slowly to avoid. Knowing that risk, it kept me moving forward every day. And I relied on my team, they became my family. They're still my family, some of the best people I've ever known."

"And we're a bunch of strangers thrown together," Dana mused. She ran a hand through her hair. "Half the time I don't know them from a bar of soap and the other half I've relying on them to not get killed and keep everyone safe and…" she ran a hand through her hair. "I thought getting to know Avalon and Bailey was a good idea. I had to talk my dad into it—"

"Wait." Jason sat up straight. He threw his arm over the back of the bench and turned to face her. "It was your idea to bring them out to Mariner Bay?" Dana nodded, and his eyebrows rose in thought. "I thought Captain Mitchell—"

"—I did have to talk him into it," Dana admitted. Nervously, she tucked her hair behind her ears. "But I know it was something he wanted. He's just so…preoccupied with his work that he hasn't had much time for family. I've seen the way he was after they came to visit and knowing how we drifted and we weren't there for graduation…" She twisted her mouth to the side. "I thought it'd be good to know we could still be a family despite everything that'd happened."

"I can't help but get a feeling there was something else to spur that decision," Jason said slowly, eyes searching her face.

"It's…." Dana let out a long breath. "It's almost the anniversary of when Ryan was taken from us," she explained. Jason nodded slowly, knowing the story. "It's been so long and…this time of year is really hard on my dad. I thought, maybe, it'd help if all of us were together this time." She chuckled. "I never thought we'd all bond because of power ranger stuff and even that's torn us apart."

"In my experience, being a ranger can wreak havoc on a lot of areas of your life. And I can see you're starting to worry about that. However, you asked for my advice and I'll give you the best advice I can give." Jason licked his lips. He sat in silence for a few long moments, gathering his thoughts together. And as Dana watched him, she saw something shift through him. Nothing that was too obvious, too perceptible. But something changed. In his mind, he was back to being a ranger. "Communication is key. The loner you keep things in, keep things away from your team, the worse off you'll be. Trusting people you don't know is always hard, every time new rangers came to the team it was a learning curve they had to take, some made it easier than others. But we'd all become teammates, we're all part of a bigger plan that we may've been destined for and personal issues can't be let in. Having worries and doubts is human, but as Zordon used to tell us, our courage, strength, and honor are what made us becomes rangers. And that can't be taken away."

Dana nodded. A slow smile came to her face. She leaned back against the bench, throwing her good posture out the window, her spine arching. She relaxed, his words resonating with her. It was the best she'd felt in weeks.

"And as for Avalon and Bailey, it just takes time. Trust me. I've got a lot of experience with that."

An hour later, Dana and Jason arrived back at the AquaBase before going their separate ways. Dana headed into the wing that'd take her to her sleeping quarters. She couldn't wait to tell Kelsey what she and Jason had talked about. The two young women had spent enough time when they'd been asleep talking about their progress, Diabolico, Vypra, and this new Titanium ranger. (Well, Kelsey slept while Dana talked, Kelsey was a deep sleeper and managed to fall asleep quickly). Nevertheless, it was good to get some of it off her chest.

Dana turned a corner and nearly crashed into Carter and Joel as they left the breakroom. She slammed right into Carter and let out a startled gasp of surprise. His laughter abruptly ceased, and he grabbed Dana's elbows to hold her steady, her hands flying to his chest. His well-defined chest, Dana couldn't help but noticing. To her horror, she felt her fingers curl in, forming around his pectorals, before she pulled her hands away, peeking at his face under her fringe.

Carter looked as started as she did—though she was unsure if it was due to her groping him—but he recovered quickly. He cleared his throat and took a step back, dropping his hands from her arms. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, you flew around that corner like you were on fire or something," Joel said. He snickered, bringing a hand up to cover his mouth, making Carter flick his head to glare at him, blue eyes narrowing. "And what luck, we've got a firefighter here!" He slapped Carter hard on the shoulder, making Carter's glare increase.

Dana's eyes shifted back and forth between the red and green rangers. "Is everything okay?" She suddenly realized Chad was missing, the three young men were almost always together when they weren't working either of their jobs. "Where's Chad?"

"He's in the hospital wing checking on Bailey," Carter explained. He folded his arms and cleared his throat. "It seems she woke up earlier today and Chad went to see if she was doing okay." He noticed the way Dana's face perked up and said, "From the reports I've been hearing, she's fine. Just a little knocked around as I'm sure the rest of us have started to understand." He cleared his throat again. "And Kelsey went out to climb some…rock."

Dana laughed at Carter's explanation. They put themselves in danger every day and yet none of them could understand why the yellow ranger loved to climb rocks, mountains, and boulders all without a harness or anything that'd catch her fall.

"So, uh, how was your day?"

"Hm?" Dana gave Carter a confused look.

"Your talk with Jason," Joel prompted, capturing Dana's attention. She looked at him as if only suddenly realizing he was there. "How'd that go? Carter and I are kind of jealous." He nodded as Dana asked, "Really?" and Carter rolled his eyes. "Yeah, getting some info from a former ranger, a red ranger at that. Leader of the team and everything. I'm sure you got more out of him than we have from Captain Mitchell."

Dana laughed. "Joel, my father is a fair man. But you have to admit, you really do test his patience." She thought for a moment. "Actually, you test a lot of people's patience around here."

"I'm sure Miss. Fairweather can attest to that," Jason agreed.

Joel planted his hands on his hips and pursed his lips. He held that pose for a second before lifting his chin, sticking his nose in the air. "Miss. Fairweather and I have a relationship that's too complicated for you to understand."

"Right, right." Carter locked eyes with Dana, the two shared a conspirator's smile. "You're stalking her."

"Stalking is a little harsh for a word, I prefer 'getting to know her'."

"That's three words," Dana pointed out.

"I can count, Dana."

She giggled.

"So, uh, where is Jason?" Carter asked. He peered around Dana. "I thought he'd come back with you…to the AquaBase."

"He went to find Avalon."

"Oh," Carter said. His eyes shifted. Behind him, Joel's lips pulled back into a large, knowing, almost smug, grin. He folded his arms, shifting his gaze back and forth between Carter and Dana. Carter's gaze flickered along Dana's face, as if unable to stay still. "Well, I hope your talk was helpful."

"It was," Dana reassured him. "Jason really gave me some things to think about…with being a ranger and everything that's been going on." She ran a hand through her hair. "Now I just have to figure out how to talk to my father." Dana frowned.

 _"Then when are you going to stop calling him 'your father'?"_

She'd never realized how often she'd done that until Avalon pointed it out. Not just because it was possessive, but because she used to call him 'dad' all the time. When had she started calling him 'father'? Just about the time that he'd started to make sure she was 'ship shape' she supposed.

"We could go with you," Carter offered. He blinked, almost stammered when Dana cast a curious glance his way. "I mean, I've found strength in numbers to be a very real thing. And, we're a team! It's not something that we can let you do by yourself if you're not comfortable with it." Finally, he addressed Joel, who was having a bit too much fun watching the conversation. "Isn't that right?"

Joel dutifully lifted his hand and pressed it against his forehead in a salute. "Right as rain, captain." Dana smiled, pressing her fingertips to her lips to quiet a giggle while Carter rolled his eyes. "We're a team." He put his arms around Carter's and Dana's shoulders, pulling them close to his sides. "And teammates help each other. Besides,"—He let go of Dana and grasped Carter's chin—"You can't say 'no' to this face, can you?"

Carter reached up and pushed Joel away from him, face twisted into an angry expression, cheeks flushed with irritation and—embarrassment? Dana continued to laugh. She dropped her hand from her mouth, clasped it with her other in front of her. "You're right, Joel, you really can't say 'no' to him," she said. Carter and Joel both looked at her in surprise. "I mean, he's our fearless leader, can't really turn down a direct order, right?" A steely glint came to her eye. "The thing is, though, I don't follow orders." She smiled at Carter. "But if you asked nicely…"

Joel made a funny face, dropping his arm from Carter and stood up straight. "If that's the case, do you think you could ask your old man if he likes me?" Joel asked. "Because I'm really starting to wonder what the status of our relationship is."

Dana laughed. "Sorry Joel, that's something you'll have to figure out for yourself. There are some things that are sacred between a father and daughter, and that's especially with whether or not he likes you."

"And that's a 'no'," Carter said. Joel responded by shoving him on the arm.

Stepping around the two, Dana continued towards the sleeping quarters. Her mind swirled with everything she'd heard that day. It was a tornado of fears and worries that whipped around but all the same, things had never been clearer.

* * *

With a sigh, Avalon tossed her phone back and forth between her hands. The crash of the waves in front of her, which used to be soothing, merely stirred the waves of pain that clenched around her heart, pounding against her chest. She pressed her feet into the sand, hoping it would warm her the way being at the beach always did. The grains of sand were cool and rough under her feet. Not even her home away from home felt inviting.

The orange ranger continued to spin her phone. Once. Twice Three times. She slapped it against her palm and flipped it open before she could stop herself. Navigating through the screens, she scrolled through the contacts stored inside, much more than had been in there when she first arrived in Angel Grove. She scrolled through it a few times, trying to figure out who was the best to talk to. Kimberly was a no go; her gymnastics career hardly lent her any time to sleep let alone receive phone calls. Zack, none of them had been able to get in contact with since he left, let alone the sporadic letter that arrived in the mail. Trini took too much money with international calling plans and how long it took for letters to go overseas. Tommy's schedule was completely hectic with his studies and his racing career, making him hard to get a hold of. Kat was in London, the international charges would be astronomical. Rocky, Adam, and Aisha she wasn't as close to…

Shifting her lower jaw to the side, Avalon stared at the screen where a name was highlighted. _Billy._ Before she could stop herself, she jabbed her thumb into it and waited as the call connected. Avalon watched her phone rang. The face of the phone's screen blinked, trying to connect to the person on the other end. She frowned when it went straight to voicemail. Avalon held her phone at an arm's length, glared at it. She pressed her thumb into the redial button and, this time, put the phone to her ear. She couldn't stand to watch it tell her the call wasn't going to be picked up. Hearing each ring made her heart thump harder and harder, punching her ribcage each time. She closed her eyes, hearing the recorded voice start its spiel, 'you've reached the voicemail box of'—

"Ugh!" Avalon pulled the phone from her ear and stabbed the end call button. She brought it up against her forehead, pressing the antenna into her forehead as hard as she could. She needed to feel the pain, needed to feel it somewhere other than in her chest. Other than her heart. Tears gathered at her lashes. She squeezed her eyes as tightly as they could, trying to keep it at bay. "I hate you," she whispered.

She snapped her phone shut and threw it as hard as she could, not caring where it landed. Avalon opened her eyes, using the heels of her palms to brush aside the tears that fell down her cheeks. Plinking one by one off her chin. Eventually, it became too much. She couldn't stop them. Her body wracked with sobs she tried her hardest to conceal. A hard lump formed in her throat she couldn't quite swallow. The startling realization came that she couldn't stop herself. Couldn't stop the tears, the hurt. Tears waterfalled over her cheeks and off her chin. Sniffles escaped Avalon as she brought her knees up.

Covering her face with her hands, Avalon leaned forward, curling up, and burst out into loud sobs. She hardly looked up when she heard rapid footsteps coming her way. Jason jogged over to her, letting out a long breath as he came to a stop beside her. "You know, you can say I've been chasing you as much as you want, but this is getting ridiculous," he said. He expected her to make some sort of a snarky remark that'd make him laugh, then noticed she didn't respond. Concerned, Jason squatted next to her, rubbing her shoulder gently. "Hey, what's wrong?"

He hadn't seen her cry in a long time. As far as he knew, nothing got her to that point so easily. Being around her father must've hurt her more than he expected. Avalon lifted her face from her thighs and hastily brushed away her tears. She grabbed her phone from her side and turned it show him the screen. Jason glanced at the name that flickered across the top and felt his heart sink in frustration and understanding. Stretching out his legs, Jason put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.

He'd been doing that a lot lately, he noticed. There was more pain running through her than he thought, that she'd hidden so long. The same amount of pain he'd been sure to hide as well. It was something they were able to commiserate about, to share when they were vulnerable. But maybe, just maybe, they were holding each other back, too.

* * *

Kelsey winced as her knee scraped against the large rock she hefted herself over. She turned very carefully, wedging herself against the cliffside. Lowering her chin, she watched as blood bubbled over the front of her knee, running down her leg. Nothing she couldn't handle if she hadn't forgotten her first-aid kit back at the AquaBase, in her eagerness to try out the new trail that'd opened. She would get an earful of it later.

It wasn't too deep, she realized. But there was still the chance of infection with the dirt and dust floating around the area. Not to mention if she climbed any higher with more rocks coming in, they would get lodged in. She could hardly get down either. Reaching behind her, Kelsey opened her water bottle and dumped it over her knee, washing the blood away, making the sting come back twice as hard.

"Oh, wow," Kelsey murmured. The cut was deeper than she expected it to be. It'd probably need stitches. "Hmm." She thought for a moment. If she used some of the elastic in her shorts, she could probably make a makeshift tourniquet.

"Ah!"

Kelsey jumped at the sudden sound and looked over to find a hand wedge itself on the ledge she was sitting on. The hand was then followed by an arm and next thing she knew, a young man pulled himself up to the ledge next to her. He flashed her a small smile as he pulled himself up to sit next to her. "That's a doozy of a climb," he remarked.

"I'll say," Kelsey agreed. She waved her arm toward the view of the city in front of them. "But the view is spectacular."

"You're right," The man agreed. He looked at the view then smiled back to her. His gaze dropped to her knee. "Wow, what happened?"

"Oh. I just scraped myself on the way up. It's no big deal."

"A scrape is no big deal, that's going to need some stitches." The man quickly moved to grab the fanny pack that sat around him. "I've got some bandages and gauze in here somewhere. I can have it wrapped up in a minute."

"Oh, you don't have to do that."

"I insist."

Kelsey smiled and nodded. "Okay, then. Thank you. I'm Kelsey." She enthusiastically shook his hand. "Kelsey Winslow."

The man smiled. "Nice to meet you, Kelsey. I'm Ryan."

* * *

 **A/N:** Well, it took me long enough to get back to this. I hope you all enjoyed it, I know I did. The first arc of the story is now done with this chapter and a new one starts with the next one.

Thanks to **ChibiDawn23, Adela, Guest, and Son of Whitebeard** for reviewing.

 **~Av**


	16. Suspicious Decisions

**.:15:.**

 _Suspicious Decisions  
_

* * *

 _Billy Cranston stuck his key in the lock of his apartment, twisted it left and right as he heard the tumblers within the dead bolt shift, then the door opened. He paused for a second, before pushing the door open. Years of being a power ranger—and martial arts training—had finely tuned his senses of his surroundings._

 _How many times had Jason reminded him the best way to meditate? To sit down, clear your mind, make sure you're allowing yourself to be connected to the world around you, taking in everything it gave you. Over the years he'd managed to incorporate that part into his everyday life. The logical part of him had been skeptical of the idea, thinking there was nothing to that sort of thing. But the curious part of him was even bigger, the part that had to try everything—an experiment of sorts._

 _It was that training that alerted him to not being alone. It was that same training that whomever was on the other side of the door wasn't anyone who was to harm him. But they had to have been desperate to find him if they traveled all the way to Cambridge, when he hadn't given a forwarding address from Angel Grove._

 _If he were being honest, he was trying to leave everything in Angel Grove behind. No matter how much it hurt him and everyone he knew back then. Even if…Billy shook his head and stepped inside. This was more important. He closed the door to his apartment behind him, dropping his crossbody bag to the ground. Took off his shoes, following his own 'no shoe policy' in the apartment. Dropped his keys on the hook by the door. Took his time._

 _It wasn't a large apartment. One big enough so that he had the space he needed. A kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, and living room that turned into his work space. Not much else that would provide some sort of entertainment for him. He still practiced his martial arts for exercise, went running when the time called for it, lifted weights, and got socialization when he was in class. As it was, the place was messy, a stark contrast to his otherwise orderly demeanor. Showing he hadn't been there much since he returned from the Peace Conference._

 _Nevertheless, as Billy walked into the living room, he wasn't entirely surprised to find Captain Mitchell sitting on his couch, hands tucked between his knees, holding onto his formal hat. Captain Mitchell lifted his steady gaze and focused on Billy. For a long moment, the two stared at each other, unwilling to move first._

 _Finally, Billy nodded and greeted him with, "Captain." Captain Mitchell nodded back. "What can I do for you?" Straight to the point. Just as he knew Captain Mitchell would appreciate. In the back of his mind, Billy wondered if his sudden appearance in his life was due to what happened between him and Avalon. That's ludicrous. He waved the thought away. As punitive as it was, Billy knew Avalon and her father didn't have a relationship that allowed Captain Mitchell anywhere into her personal life and that of her relationship—former relationship, Billy reminded himself—with the blue ranger. "Would you like something to drink?"_

 _"That's be great, thanks," Captain Mitchell agreed. Still, he didn't move from his spot on the couch._

 _Billy went to the kitchen to peer in the refrigerator, grimacing as he did so. He'd been gone for so long that getting groceries had been the last thing on his mind. Thankfully, there was at least a few bottles of water left over, though he craved caffeine. After pulling an all-nighter with his own work, there was more that needed to be done with his school work as well. So far, he'd managed to juggle it with little effort._

 _He walked back to Captain Mitchell and handed over a water bottle. "What do I owe the pleasure of you finding me here, Captain?" He asked._

 _Captain Mitchell wasted no time. "It isn't a secret that you have a lot of experience with the monsters that have come to attack our civilization over the last couple of years. And due to the conversation, we had when you were last in Australia, you are proving to be very valuable to me." Billy raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued. "I'm aware of the increased dangers of monsters and other intergalactic beings that may try to come attack. The government has been working closely with NASADA in the recent years."_

 _"Yes, General Norquist has mentioned something about that," Billy said. "As it is a government faction, I can't say I'm too surprised to see you here. Is there anything you wanted to talk to me about? In particular, I mean?" He took a long swig of water, then nearly choked at Captain Mitchell's next words._

 _"Yes, I need your help in completing a new power source."_

 _Billy wiped off the front of his shirt, embarrassed. Here he was in front of a government official, talking about something he'd lived through for…four years? He had to think hard about it. Everything seemed to blend together. "A new power source?" He lowered his water bottle to his side. "I don't mean to be rude, Captain Mitchell, but the only power sources I've come across so far have been alien in some way of their technology."_

 _"But you have used your experience with that you create the Turbo Powers."_

 _Billy conceded that. It had been a struggle, even more so in keeping it a secret from his friends. But they hadn't needed to know about it at the time. He really needed to focus on getting it done. There were too many times he'd wanted to say something, but Zordon and Alpha had reminded him how imperative it was to keep it quiet. Over the years, Zordon and Alpha had become more of his family than his own father was. It was a strange distinction to make, when the thought crossed his mind. How easily he'd left more of his 'human' side behind and become more engrossed in being a ranger._

 _Much more than the others had._

 _Now he was working to keep himself from going back into the ranger world, working hard to be 'human' again. And being sucked back in. The irony wasn't lost on him. On the other hand, his curiosity was something that would never be completely bogged down. And when something ranger related was brought up, it was hard for him to completely stay away._

 _He watched the news daily, watching what his former teammates had been doing. Following their every movement. Now he was being offered a way to go back in. Unbeknownst to him, he'd made up his mind the second Captain Mitchell brought it up. "What do you need me to do?" He asked, the slight amount of suspicion not evident in his voice._

 _And Captain Mitchell explained everything to him. How there needed to be a new power source made as soon as possible. How he was afraid demonic creatures were about to come back to life after having been sealed away. Explained his past with them. It was then Billy realized how much information he was being given and how much he was sure Avalon and Bailey didn't know. The expression on his face must've given him away for Captain Mitchell hesitated, the only time throughout their conversation._

 _"If you want to call—"_

 _"No," Billy said quickly. He shook his head. "It's best if they don't know I'm there." He became a bit more forthcoming under Captain Mitchell's gaze. "It's best if she doesn't know I'm there. I want to finish before they arrive."_

 _Captain Mitchell's eyes narrowed. He still had a sense of father-protection within him, Billy surmised, from the suspicious way the older man regarded him. However, Captain Mitchell didn't ask or say anything else about his daughters throughout their time working together. Nothing other than to gain reassurance that Bailey would be able to decipher his work._

 _Billy reassured him she was more than capable of figuring out his work. Once he was finished, he went back to MIT—from Mariner Bay—and worked hard to put everything behind him._

 _It was much easier said than done. But, eventually, he did it._

* * *

Bailey frowned, folding her arms as she watched the rangers spar with each other. Carter was doing a good job, she realized. He certainly worked into the leader role he was chosen for. Every piece of advice or critique he was given had been taken in and worked on in his fighting style. Even as she fought against Chad, who had much more practice in his martial arts, was holding his own very well.

Bailey shifted her gaze to Chad, changing the screen of the computer in front of her. Changing from Carter's form to Chad's. The way they carried themselves were different, it was evident from the imaging of their bodies. Carter was a bit stiffer, while Chad was looser, fluid. Very much like their own personalities. Carter was a stand-up guy, made sure he did everything by the book while Chad a more peaceful, go with the flow, feeling. Even as they fought, Bailey could see it. Carter struck out hard and fast, almost like a soldier, while Chad waved through his movements, making sure his body moved in the right ways.

Finally, Bailey signaled for them to finish then turned to Miss. Fairweather, who stood at her side. "They're definitely getting better," she said. "But I'm still not sure they're any match for the Titanium ranger." She'd know, she saw it all happen firsthand. Was the one who had been the most affected by it.

Her stay in the hospital had been long enough. The last thing she wanted was for one of the rangers to end up there as well. They were very straightforward, wanting to be sure their tests were working. Didn't have much of a bedside manner. It was the hospital wing of the Aqua Base, of course. Everything they needed was all in one area. It was a massive relief when Bailey could get out and go to school, have new scenery to look at. She could only imagine how Avalon was fairing, stuck there as she did her college course work online.

A wistful sigh escaped Bailey's lips. She couldn't believe they'd gone so long without talking to each other. _Really_ talking to each other. But they were mad at each other. When had their communication become so strained? Sure, they've argued. It's happened many times before and they always could work through things. There was nothing that could tear them apart.

 _Until now._ Bailey thought. She turned her attention to Miss. Fairweather, waiting for the older woman's response. "You're right," She said slowly. Her eyes betrayed the emotion she felt, though she tried to keep her voice calm. "They're still no match for the Titanium ranger. Not yet, not at the rate they're going."

Bailey hummed. What else could be done? The Titanium ranger had been showing himself more often within the last few days than he had after his first appearance. The rangers fought monsters here and there, those that had been sent down by Diabolico. They received upgrades in their arsenal, the Rail Rescue systems, creating the Supertrain Megazord. They could stop the monsters then, but still couldn't stop the Titanium Ranger.

Because of that, Captain Mitchell pushed them harder and harder. Gave them more training, pushed them into tests; time trials, specialized weight training, studies of their past encounters with the Titanium Ranger to see what they did right and wrong. Everything he could imagine that would give them the upper hand. And still, it wasn't enough.

"What else can we do?" Bailey asked. She tried to keep her voice steady. Tried to keep the same thought that had plagued her out of her head; if only she were a ranger again. If only, if only, if only. They clearly needed someone else on their side. Even Avalon's turbo powers; which gave her enhanced speed, wasn't much to keep the Titanium Ranger from succeeding.

And Bailey beat herself up about it more than she had over the last few encounters. If only she hadn't wanted to be 'normal'. If only she hadn't allowed her own insecurities to get ahead of her. It was easier said than done. Who wasn't to be insecure with Avalon as an older sister? She asked herself. She was strong, tough, street smart, and seemed to always know what to say. While Bailey followed everything she did blindly, second guessing her movements and making sure she had all the information needed before deciding.

What happened to the girl that, along with Bulk, Skull, and Fred, faced off against Ivan Ooze without hesitation, without her powers? Bailey pushed the thought away and focused on Miss. Fairweather once more. "What about Dana, Kelsey, and Joel?" She asked. "The lot have been working as hard as Carter and Chad, yeah?"

Miss. Fairweather nodded. On her own screen, she pulled up the video surveillance of Joel, Dana, and Kelsey. They ran through an obstacle course, the same one that Captain Mitchell had put them through when he berated Carter for shooting first and not paying attention to his surroundings. They moved through it so fast now, and yet she could see things within the course had changed. Every now and then, the footage showed the three rangers getting blindsided by a cutout of a monster, of a new explosion pattern Captain Mitchell rigged up, of traps that they'd already fallen for through precious encounters with the Titanium Ranger.

"As you can see, they're not making much progress, either," Miss. Fairweather pointed out. "And the Captain is really starting to become despondent about it."

Bailey whistled under her breath. She saw that firsthand. Surprisingly, she'd woken up at the hospital to find Captain Mitchell talking quietly to a doctor, demanding she had everything she needed to be comfortable. And she couldn't do more than glare at him, wondering what he wanted, after finally been given the clue that he didn't see her. That she was invisible to him. And yet he showed more concern for her the short amount of time he'd been there to see her.

It was more confusing than anything else. She hadn't seen a sign of her father—not Captain Mitchell but her _father_ —in years. It was hard to see how he was after he saw she was okay. Short-tempered. Isolated. He blamed himself for everything that was going on, having had been the one who created the Titanium ranger powers in the first place. It was something she and her friends had all gone through at some point or another in their ranger tenure. They knew what it was like to blame themselves for some sort mistake they'd made.

But one this big…

One that was constantly beating them down with little to no effort. It was only a wonder what Diabolico was going to do with the ranger as soon as he felt the time was right. Bailey's gaze shifted back to Miss. Fairweather, her mind already whirring with the solution they were all missing.

"He's not going to stop pushing until we know for sure how to defeat him," Miss. Fairweather said. She sighed, folding her arms. "And, at this point, I'm not sure how it's going to happen. Not with the way the rangers are at right now. Not when they're split apart so much."

Bailey's eyebrows furrowed. As far as she could see, all the rangers were working well together. Almost as if they'd been working together for years. As if to prove her point, Carter and Chad stopped their sparring, with Chad catching Carter's hand in his fist. He reached out with his other hand and patted Carter on the shoulder, making the red ranger nod to whatever it was Chad was saying.

"Everyone has to work together," Miss. Fairweather continued, her eyes still on the rangers. "They have to trust each other. Completely. 100%. There's still hesitation and distrust. Until that's removed,"—Miss. Fairweather look her in the eye— "it won't work. I'm sure you know that firsthand."

Bailey lowered her gaze. Intuitively, she knew Miss. Fairweather was speaking about her as soon as she started. Knew she was referring to the issues she'd been having with not only her sister, but with Dana and her father as well. As well as Avalon's issues with working with the new team, issues with Captain Mitchell, issues with knowing Billy had been working with them.

Bailey decided then. She was tired of it. Tired of it all. Tired of everyone holding back. Things needed to get better between them and it was going to happen whether she it worked out or not. And there was only one place she knew that would be the best place to start.

Turning on her heel, Bailey left the training center and went back to hers and Avalon's room. She immediately went to her bed and fell to her knees, reaching below to pull out a manila folder she'd kept hidden beneath it, within her trunk. She unfastened the clips and dumped the contents onto her bed, looking over her shoulder to make sure no one had followed her.

She didn't expect Avalon to come in at any point, she'd been spending even more time with Jason since he was leaving soon. She had plenty of time. Bailey glanced over the _CONFIDENTIAL_ sign written on the front and quickly bypassed it. She'd already looked through the files before, Captain Mitchell hadn't known she'd made copies of it when he first showed her.

Part of her felt guilty, but a bigger part of her, the logical part of her, knew it was the only option they had. She turned over to the next page and took a deep breath when reading the title: _Introduction to Project Lightspeed._ She'd read it so many times before, but needed to know it by heart.

If she was going to make her own morpher and regain her ranger powers, she had to start somewhere.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _I'm back! Finally got to see a little bit of Billy in this chapter. If you've read_ _New Beginning,_ _you'll understand the way he acted here. He may be a tiny bit OOC, but I think his actions make sense as well. And now you finally get to see the start of the new arc within the story. Bailey is going to work to get her powers back!_

 _It's interesting to see how Billy and Bailey both respond to similar circumstances they're put in. I know I based Bailey off Billy at the beginning (hence the similar sounding name and personality) but Bailey is certainly going to grow more as the story/this arc goes on._

 _Thanks to **ChibiDawn23 and Adela** for reviewing._

 _Powerless II_ _will be updated soon!_

 _ **~Av**_


	17. Danger Looms Closer

**.:16:.**

 _Danger Looms Closer  
_

* * *

Carter's eyes shot open when he heard a distant alarm going off. His first instinct was to drop to the floor and run towards the briefing room so Captain Mitchell and Miss. Fairweather would give them everything they knew about the monster attacking the city.

He managed to stop himself just in time. Every muscle in his body tensed, waiting to jettison him out the bed and to the floor. However, the moment his eyes opened, two things happened. One, he noticed he was a lot closer to the ceiling than he usually was, and the second being that he realized it was a different kind of alarm. Had he allowed himself to vault out of bed, he would've immediately crashed to the ground, allowing himself to fall face first to the floor of the bunk room of the firehouse.

Thankfully, his muscles kicked in to slam his hands on the railing of his bed. Then he realized the sound of the alarm was of a smoke alarm going off. Not an alarm of any inherent danger. Well, whomever had set off the fire alarm certainly was going to set someone's ire off. Anyone who was woken up while catching a few z's was always liable to be punched.

Carter allowed his body to relax, letting out a long, low sigh. He could feel his body trembling seconds before his muscles completely relaxed. There was no danger, he was okay. Carter sat up and grasped the railing of his bed, dropping to the floor. The sounds of his feet hitting the ground made his bunkmate pause in his snoring, slowly roll over, then go back to snoring. Carter didn't blame him. They were all running on the last few hours of their 48-hour shift. Any time a firefighter was tired, they couldn't be in top shape to save a life.

Getting as much sleep as possible was the best course of action. Of course, when someone wasn't getting pranked. Carter knew his fellow fire fighters long enough to know there was only a few moments they truly had to themselves. There were only a few times where Carter could go to the bathroom without having to pause and look in every inch to make sure some sort of smoke bomb wasn't about to go off the second he sat down to relieve himself.

And, of course, there were the times were some idiot managed to make the smoke alarm go off. Didn't they know by now not to use the toaster in the kitchen? All it ever did was make whatever was inside go up in flames. They were a highly respected fire house in Mariner Bay and couldn't afford a new toaster. Then again, as far as Carter was concerned, a few blackened pieces of toast were little things compared to the lives they saved every day.

Carter strolled into the break room and found some members of his company standing around the toaster, laughing to themselves as they fanned the smoky air around it with a dishtowel. Carter reached out and clapped his closest friend, known simply by his last name, Hunter, on the shoulder. "Getting an early start, huh?" Carter grinned, leaning next to him. "Lack of fires getting to you?"

A collective groan filled the air, making Carter smile to himself. He knew about the superstitions, even believed it himself. If anyone ever mentioned how quiet a day was, then nothing short of a disaster was coming. "What'd you go ahead and do that for, huh, Grayson? Do you _like_ putting yourself on the line like that?" Hunter asked with a sarcastic edge to his tone. "I guess you do, considering how much you like to run around in that spandex suit every day."

Carter's smile widened as he folded his arms, taking in all the jeers and jabs that came his way from his fellow fire-fighters. He knew it was coming. It happened about once a day. Something about his favorite color, something about the way his butt looked in the spandex, something about the way he was shown on TV. Of course, there were those that he'd save who would recognize him while trying to save him. How many times, in his civilian form, did he have a microphone shoved in his face to ask about his rescue, to ask about the monster of the day?

Enough so that it was starting to bug him. And, with the Titanium ranger running around, it was grating on his nerves more than he'd like to admit. Captain Mitchell must've noticed. Carter wasn't stupid. Even Miss. Fairweather was watching him closely. Watching to see if he'd fall apart from fatigue, from pushing himself too hard. But Carter was determined, determined to do anything that'd taken down the Titanium ranger. Even if that meant working longer hours at the firehouse. The more he worked; the better grasp he had on the city, on where the Titanium ranger could hide if they ever came across each other again.

"I only do as I'm told," Carter explained. "I do what I'm supposed to do with the job I'm given."

"Do you really believe in this demons and monsters, business?" Andrews, another one of his close friends asked. He stuck a fork into the smoking toaster and fished out what looked to previously be a bagel. "I mean, we see the destruction every day but, why would they want to take on Mariner Bay?"

"You've never heard the stories?" Hunter asked. "About the demons that used to live here?" Carter watched Hunter carefully, wanting to know more himself. Wanting to know as much as he could about Diabolico, Vypra, and every other monster that would come to destroy them. "Mariner Bay used to be a desert and the demons reigned over this area. As time went on, they were sealed away and the place was leveled to take on modern civilization. It just goes to show that they'd want to get some sort of revenge against us."

"You think that's it?" Carter asked. "They want revenge?"

Hunter shrugged. "Why else would they want to take over this town? I don't know about you, but I don't think these guys are as into what the government is doing as we are."

Carter nodded quietly. He moved every piece of information through his head, trying to make sense of it. Project Lightspeed was part of a government funded project. He knew that since signing on. And, just like any piece of government, there was some information he'd know and some he wouldn't be allowed to know. Classified information. Captain Mitchell was very serious about that. It was why they hadn't known about the Titanium morpher until it was too late.

But maybe, just maybe, the public knew something more about his ranger duties than he knew himself. Because he was further on the inside than anyone else was.

"What do you think, Grayson?" Hearing his name, Carter lifted his eyebrows. He watched Hunter's expression turn…suspicious. Almost, as if he knew something Carter didn't. "About everything you're doing. What're your thoughts on everything that's been going on? It's not so different than the monsters in Angel Grove, what's threatened our lives. Why do you think it's happening?"

Carter watched Hunter for a long moment, suddenly struck with the feeling he was under the microscope himself. Instead of following his first instinct, to stand up straight, militant, and give the answers Captain Mitchell engrained in the rangers' heads since they started, Carter did the opposite.

He allowed his shoulders to slouch, hunched himself forward, and give a disarming half-smile. "I have no idea," he said honestly. "I can't even imagine why they find Earth so interesting and what they want form us." He licked his lips. "All I know is, the Earth needs someone to protect it and as long as I'm alive, I'll do it."

As soon as the last word escaped Carter's lips, the tell-tale alarm went off, followed shortly by the squads of firefighters needed to report to the scene of an accident. Hunter and Andrews rolled their eyes and muttered small offenses to Carter as they dropped everything and jogged to the apparatus floor. Carter followed along behind them. His smile faded as soon as he stepped into his suspenders and pulled them up over his shoulders, followed by his helmet and gloves. Carter climbed up into the fire truck and sat back, sticking his arm out the window to smack the side of the fire truck twice.

Hunter turned on the siren and pulled the fire truck out the station and onto the street.

In the distance, Carter could see a trail of smoke looming towards the sky. And as he did, every time he was on the way to a fire, he closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, and tried to steady his nerves. Reminded himself of that fire fighter that saved him years ago.

If he could give his life up like that, put it on the line for him, all with the strong sense of calm rationality that only a man who was facing certain death could do, then Carter could do it to.

Whether as a ranger or as a fire fighter.

And, if he were being honest, he was starting to find it harder to differentiate between the two.

* * *

Ryan folded his arms as he sat on the bench just outside the state park. His eyes flickered back and forth, over the faces of those that ran, jogged, walked, and strolled past him. All those smiling faces and his was practically carved out of granite. It was hard to find anything to be excited for when there wasn't much of his life he had to look forward to.

How many days had he had that were his own? That he didn't have to be threatened or tortured into doing what others wanted? He could hardly remember a time where he wasn't…wasn't what? He wasn't necessarily human, couldn't be when he had no idea what humanity mean to him. Had no idea what humanity even was.

Closing his eyes, Ryan tried to stifle the groan that came to his lips. He could feel it moving, the cobra tattoo on his back. No, not a tattoo. An entity of some sort. Whatever it was that cursed him continued to mess with him more than Diabolico's hold on him. It was the burning feeling of his flesh crawling, itching and peeling as the cobra shifted that caused him the most pain. He'd managed to block everything else out, the ultimate end that was waiting for him if the Cobra got much closer to his neck.

The sting came once more, Ryan's teeth clenched together and he hissed through his teeth. His hand shot to his neck, grabbing his pressure points, as if it would keep the snake from moving closer and closer. All when he knew it was his morphing that was making it move closer to his demise. Even when he had no choice in the matter, Ryan knew of the dangers he was putting himself in. But if it meant he was going to escape from Diabolico's grasp, he'd do whatever it'd take.

"Hey!"

"Sorry!"

"Watch out!"

"My bad!"

"What are you, stupid?"

"Nope, just having a good time!"

Ryan sat up straight and looked over when he heard the familiar voice. A smile came to Ryan's face when he saw Kelsey come barreling up the sidewalk toward him; her arms flew as she wind milled herself away from those that dared cross her path. Ryan grimaced, watching her come closer. He brought up a hand to cover his mouth, swallowing the laugh that threatened to burst forward.

It surprised him, when was the last time he'd laughed? Actually laughed? Probably, he realized, the same day his entire life fell apart. The same day he'd gone through years of pain and torture, all leading up to moments like these. Where he'd get closer and closer to the targets he was trying to destroy.

 _Don't lose sight of the goal,_ he could hear Diabolico's voice whisper in the back of his mind. A dark cloud that continued to haunt him, even while he slept. Yet, Ryan pushed it away, watching as Kelsey careened herself towards him and crash landed on the bench next to him. Her feet flew in the air, showing off the rollerblades strapped to her feet. They were such a bright yellow that Ryan brought his hand up to shield his eyes.

"You…uh…" he started, taking in her attire. "You really like yellow, don't you?" He asked. Shifting on the bench, Ryan threw his arm across the back and appraised her. "Let's see, yellow helmet, yellow arm pads, yellow knee pads, yellow skates, and…is that a fanny pack?"

A blush came to Kelsey's cheeks. She grabbed the bulging package behind her and twisted it to her front. "There's nothing wrong with using a fanny pack," she defended herself. "I know it's kind of dorky looking, but it's got everything I need. You can't go anywhere and not be prepared."

Ryan's gaze shifted from the fanny pack to the morpher on her arm. It looked very much like the one he had, but still stylistically different. His was in the shape of a 'V', holding gray and blue accents to it. And yet, Ryan didn't see anything yellow that adorned her morpher. He mentioned as much and Kelsey turned her wrist over, as if just remembering she was wearing it. "Yeah, I keep saying we should be able to decorate them in some way but Captain Mitchell vetoed that as soon as I brought it up."

Ryan nodded as he listened. Yet, he was taking in everything Kelsey was saying, and had been since he first met her. _Their morphers aren't distinguishable from each other, I'll have to get to as many of them as I can,_ Ryan thought. _Breaking their team down should be easy. They're not strong enough to beat me yet._ He shifted his focused back to Kelsey as she flipped open the fanny pack, showing off the colorful array of bandages and medical supplies inside.

"Wow, you're _really_ prepared," Ryan chuckled.

"Well, since my embarrassing moment getting stuck on a cliff," Kelsey said. She rolled her eyes. "How many times have you managed to slice your leg open like that?" She reached out, shoving him on the arm. "Thank God I had a big, strong man to help me in my time of need."

Ryan felt his smile widen. Whether it was from her comment or from the ease she was speaking to him, he wasn't quite sure. Either way, butterflies of excitement roared through his stomach. He was moving closer and closer to the Aqua Base. Closer to their headquarters. Closer to his target. He just needed some more time.

"Well, I'm still not sure I'm helping you so much," Ryan said truthfully. "You've got more than enough energy to help yourself." He stood up, grabbing her hands to keep her steady as he did so. "Do you think you have enough to share to go on a walk?"

Kelsey planted her hands on her hips. "I thought we were going for a run."

"Did you plan on running in those blades?"

"I told you, always be prepared." Kelsey turned and pointed towards the drawstring bag she had on her back. With skill that even Ryan couldn't imagine anyone else having, Kelsey perfectly balanced herself on her blades as she switched out to her shoes. Then, she placed the blades into her drawstring back and gave a thumbs up to Ryan.

He fell in step with her and the two started to jog around the park. And Ryan listened as she continued to talk…and talk…and talk about her life with being a ranger and the rest of the Lightspeed Rescue team. He listened as she talked about Carter; the leader of the team. He could be a bit of a stick in the mud, she explained, but he had a great sense of responsibility and leadership. Joel was the one who was a loose cannon, he did things his own way, but he was a creative thinker and could come up with new ways of fighting when they needed it. Chad was very go-with-the-flow but also knew how to defend himself and he did it well, coming alive when in the water and on the field. Dana, was almost as straight-laced as Carter, but was very pragmatic and resourceful.

"What about you?" Ryan asked. They made a second lap around the park, picking up their pace as they went. Kelsey was hardly out of breath as they jogged along. She shrugged almost bashfully before responding.

"Me? I'm not so special. I like to experience things. I love life. I can be a bit impulsive. It gets me in trouble often. I mean, you saw, when I was climbing up those cliffs." Kelsey took in a deep breath. "It's weird, being a ranger." She gave a quick wave to people that waved enthusiastically as she passed. Even stopped to shake hands with a little girl who squealed in delight, seeing the yellow ranger pass by. "Everyone acts like we're some sort of Superman or Batman but I'm just a person who wants to run and climb everything I can before..."

"Before what?"

"Before it all ends and we go our separate ways. Don't get me wrong, everyone's cool. Even Avalon and Bailey are cool in their own way. I don't hang out with Avalon too much, she sticks by herself. She seems to be mad…or sad about something. Bailey's cool. She hangs out with Miss. Fairweather and Captain Mitchell and they do everything they can to make sure we're up to speed with our rangering. They give us fitness regimes, training schedules, debrief us on our past fights, and train us on our upcoming ones. She's, like, a mini-mentor to all of us. I don't know, we're all different and we work together like a team."

Ryan nodded. He took in a deep breath, swallowed hard, steadied himself to ask the question he'd been gearing up to for the past few days of meeting with Kelsey. "What about this Titanium ranger?" he asked.

"He's bad news," Kelsey said simply. "What about him?"

"Do you have any ideas of who he is?" Ryan kept his eyes on her as he continued to jog forward. He didn't need to see where he was going. He could sense it, Diabolico was controlling him. His every move. His every thought. Waiting for the same sort of information. "If you knew his or her identity, then you'd have a better chance of stopping him."

"No, we don't know at all," Kelsey denied, shaking her head. She slowed to a walk, a frustrated frown marring her otherwise friendly features. "But if we did, I'd give that guy a piece of my mind!" She smacked her enclosed fist into her open palm. "He endangers the lives of everyone in the city for his sick entertainment. I'm not going to sit back and have that happen."

The corners of Ryan's lip turned upwards. _That's what you think._ Instead, he tried to sound interested as he said, "Well, what are you going to do?"

"We'll keep training. We'll do everything we can to make sure this guy goes down. No matter what he does, we're going to stop him. We've got this…this new morpher, a copy of the Titanium power, if we can harness that, figure out how to handle it, then we can stop him."

 _So that's what they're doing, _Ryan surmised. _They're working hard to re-create my powers. Then when all of them harnesses it…_ he shook his head. No. It wasn't going to happen. He wouldn't let them get close enough to do it. But first, he had to see the morpher for himself.

And, if Kelsey were willing to tell him everything he needed to know with no prompting, it wouldn't take too long before he was down in the Aqua Base, tearing the rangers apart from the inside out.

In the back of his mind, Diabolico grinned.

* * *

 **A/N:** I had fun with this chapter. Not just because of Carter's part as it's always fun to get into his 'militant-style' of personality, but to get into Ryan's head. Knowing what we know of him from teh show, I've always wondered what'd it'd be like if he was simultaneously aware and unaware of what he was doing as an evil ranger. Though, notice he didn't react to Dana's name at all. Interesting.

I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. Bailey and Avalon will finally have their long-awaited talk in the next chapter. Also, things won't be as serious, these guys will get along, lol. Plus, ranger fights galore.

Thanks to **ChibiDawn23, Adela, and Guest** for reviewing.

 **~Av**


	18. Clear The Air

**.:17:.**

 _Clear The Air_

* * *

Bailey pushed her glasses up her nose and rubbed her eyes. They burned, burned with hours of work. Burned with a lack of tears to lubricate, burned with the intense concentration she worked hard to create her morpher. It was harder than she anticipated it'd ever be.

Working with the ranger powers of the years before, Bailey had all the know-how when it came to morphers. Knew them inside and out. She'd spent enough time with Zordon, Billy, Alpha, and Fred-even with Andros, Zhane, Deca, and other ranger teams to understand knew things about alien technology, language, and culture to figure out everything she needed to know to work on morphers. Bailey knew how to re-route the power source into creating the energy that coursed through their suits. Knew how to merge the suits' connections with the morphing grid. Knew how to make it so the energy dispelled form the suits when the rangers were attacked didn't deplete them entirely, didn't make them lose their connection to the Command Center.

She how to harness that alien energy source to route through the entirety of the Command Center and pull all the technology together when they were attacked. She learned that simply from watching the rangers, from helping them, from keeping Angel Grove safe from Ivan Ooze while the older rangers went off to space to figure out how to get their powers back. She _singlehandedly_ without powers, created an uprising to hold off a morphological being to give the rangers time to get their powers back and help Zordon.

But everything that connected that together was space. Was aliens. Was the new technology. Human technology, what she was faced with now, was making things harder for her than she'd ever imagined. Truth be told, it was the same struggles she had with life. Anything others found alien or foreign she excelled at while it was social human interaction she couldn't do.

Couldn't do then. How many times had she'd been bullied? Called names? Had her hair pulled? Had her glasses knocked off and thrown around? How many times had she cowered in on herself when other people came too close when she was studying in the library?

 _And how many times has Av helped you?_ The thought crossed Bailey's mind before she could stop it. She and Avalon weren't seeing eye to ye as of late. And if Bailey were honest, she couldn't think of the last time they hung out together since arriving in Mariner Bay. Avalon immediately pulled herself away from the group, from the team, and…from her. She'd been so busy avoiding their father, avoiding the ranger teams, avoiding everything that she'd come and started to avoid Bailey as well. _When have we last talked?_

Never.

Even when they were going to sleep they didn't say anything to each other. Bailey would lie in bed and listen as Avalon's breathing evened out and she slept soundly while Bailey stared at the ceiling and out the window of her room, watching the lights of the city around her. Some lights that needed to be repaired, others completely destroyed, others that stood tall against everything brought against them.

And there Bailey was, rubbing her fingers against her eyes, then staring out the window over Mariner Bay. How much longer would she be suffocating herself in her room, working hard to get the morpher working and it just wouldn't work? It'd spark and fizz and smoke but not do much after that. Her school work was being neglected, her work in the Aqua Base was being neglected, her relationships were all being neglected and for what? A morpher she may or may not be able to work out.

And the person who was her biggest supporter was the one she wasn't talking to. She couldn't tell she was making a morpher. All because Avalon was still angry at her because she hadn't said anything about Billy creating the Lightspeed Rescue powers. All because…because of what? Because Bailey was working hard to make peace with their father and the new rangers and Avalon sat aside as if they were the scum of the Earth?

Bailey sighed heavily. She dropped her hands from her face. Her glasses settled back into place and Bailey rested her chin in her hands as she stared at the papers in front of her. She picked up a screwdriver and twirled it around her fingers. She could force the battery compartment open and re-route that pace into the whole morpher, but if she did that, then the circuits would be overloaded. But if she tried to get a new power source, one of which she wasn't quite sure she'd get her hands on, that could flip everything around.

If only…

Bailey jumped, hearing a set of doors behind her start to open. She swept her arms across her desk and knocked all her work into the bag that sat opened by her bed. It wasn't organized—that drove her crazy—but it at least got the evidence out of the way. Bailey looked over her shoulder, relaxing a little when she saw Avalon walk into their bedroom. She slapped the lid of her phone closed and dropped onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Hey," Bailey ventured. She cringed, hating how quiet and timid her voice had become. This was her _sister_ and she was treating her like a stranger. As far as either of them were concerned, they'd slowly grown to be that. If it wasn't that they looked so similar, Bailey was sure she wouldn't have recgonized her strong, older sister for what she'd become. A shell of her former self. Or, maybe, Avalon had always been that way and Bailey simply hadn't noticed.

"What are you up to?" Avalon responded, not acknowledging Bailey's greeting. At least, not acknowledging them with a friendly response. Or even a sisterly one. Baileys heart immediately sank. Nothing. Not even her being in the hospital was able to repair the wound that slowly cracked even further as the days passed. Avalon couldn't even look at her. What was happening with them?

"Nothing," Bailey replied. Then she frowned. She told Avalon everything, what was keeping her from saying things now? The answer came to her within the next second, making her let out a quiet sound of surprise. _You're mad at her._ Bailey was never mad at her sister for too long, could never be. And yet, she was angry.

Angry about a lot of things, but most importantly, angry about how alone she'd been since they arrived in Mariner Bay. And, honestly, she'd been angry at her a lot longer than that. She'd noticed they'd started to drift apart since Avalon had started to date Billy, maybe even a little before then. Not that she would ever be too angry at Billy for any of it, and she knew Avalon was older and had her own friends. But since then, things hadn't been the same between them.

They didn't spend any time together, didn't have time for just the two of them, didn't ever have a chance to talk to each other. Or maybe it was that they _didn't_ want to talk to each other.

"Bay, you just side swiped a bunch of stuff into a bag," Avalon pointed out.

Oh, she _did_ notice. Bailey pouted. _So she notices that but not anything else?_ Bailey folded her arms, plopping onto her bed. "It's none of your business."

"Anything you do is my business," Avalon said flatly. She sighed and tossed her phone aside, watching as it bounced against the end of her bed.

Bailey's pout faded. As mad as she was at her sister, at least it proved she still cared. Even if the last few days didn't show it. "Where's Jason?"

"He went home," Avalon said shortly.

"Oh. I didn't get a chance to say 'bye'." Bailey paused. "Or 'hi' really."

"Yeah, he was really busy. He didn't have a lot of time to stick around." Avalon kept her face away from Bailey, running a hand through her hair.

No. Something else was wrong. Bailey could sense it. "Are you guys mad at each other?"

"No."

"Did you break up?"

" _No."_ This time Avalon's voice was a little sharper. Something definitely happened. As good as Avalon was at hiding her feelings, Bailey could easily suss it out. It'd always been easy for her to read people; she was so quiet, it was easy for people to forget she was there. Giving her ample time to see what people were subconsciously saying. "We didn't break up."

"Then why'd he leave so fast?"

"I don't _know_ , Bay! And it's none of your business anyway!"

"So, you can know everything about my business but I can't know yours?"

"That's right."

"Why?"

"Because I'm your big sister, that's why."

Bailey bristled. She hated this. Hated the way Avalon was keeping her an arm's length away. Hated how she was being so sanctimonious about everything. Hated how she wasn't being told anything when they were a team; from birth to working as rangers, they were a team. And they hadn't been a team for a very long time.

"That's bullshit."

The words popped out of Bailey's mouth before she could stop it. Her eyes widened in surprise, just as big as Avalon's had. Bailey rarely, if ever cursed. Especially at her sister. She found it to be 'unintelligent' as Bailey had said a long time ago. But, most importantly, she found it to be rude. And Avalon certainly didn't appreciate it being used against her.

Recovering from her shock, Avalon's eyes immediately narrowed into a glare. "What'd you just say?"

Emboldened, Bailey got back to her feet. She had to bring a hand up to the ceiling to make sure she didn't smack her head against the ceiling. Avalon stood up as well and Bailey tried her hardest not to smile, noticing the height difference between the two. Little sister was catching up to big sister in more ways than one. "I said, that's bullshit, Av!" Bailey finally responded. "It's not fair if something is right for you not for me, just because you're my big sister."

"You've never complained about it before, Bay," Avalon pointed out, suddenly looking very tired. Bailey's head jerked back. She studied her sister closely, noticed the bags under her eyes, the dark shadows that accentuated them. This was different from the livelier sister she knew. Something certainly was wrong.

"Because you never _let_ me," Bailey said.

"I'm not your keeper, Bay, I don't have to _let_ you do anything."

"Then how come you kept saying you couldn't let me tell the police what was going on when we first got to Angel Grove?" Bailey watched her sister. Avalon had started to make her way towards the door of the bedroom, wanting to leave the conversation. She was good at dropping conversations, getting her way, Bailey knew. This was the first time Avalon wasn't going to get her way and it immediately put her off.

Avalon's eyes flashed as she whipped around to face her sister. "You _know_ why you couldn't say anything," she spat.

"No, Av, I don't!" Bailey snapped back. "And for months, _years_ we had to act like we didn't exist. Scurrying around our apartment, being quiet so no one else knew we were there. We sat in the _dark_ for bloody _weeks_ because we didn't have lights, Av."

"I didn't have the money for it," Avalon defended herself. "Eventually, I got some."

"Yeah, by stealing someone's watch or necklace, or car—"

Avalon held up her finger. "I never stole a car."

Bailey snorted. "Like that's much better."

Outrage filled Avalon's face. She got closer to her sister and started to shout, jabbing herself in the chest. "I did everything I could for you, Bay! _Everything!_ And I did it to make sure you didn't get scared." She vaguely, violently, started to gesture to her side where she guessed was the direction of Angel Grove. "The moment we stepped off the plane and waited for _hours_ for our bloody aunt—if we even have one—to show up I tried to keep you from getting scared! When I sat with an operator to ask about her and found out there was no one in Angel Grove by that name, I tried to keep you from getting fucking scared! I found a place for us to _live_ so that you wouldn't get scared!"

"I know that!" Bailey shouted. That wasn't what she was trying to say. It wasn't ever what she wanted Avalon to think, that she wasn't grateful. But there were still things that didn't make sense to her.

"Do you really? Because you have no idea the kind of stress it is!" Avalon took deep breaths as she continued to yell. "How hard it is to find a place to live. How hard it is to get electricity, to get gas, to get water, to get food, all when you're fourteen and have a little sister to care for and all the while knowing your father willingly sent you somewhere without someone to be there for you." She started to count on her fingers. "I had to do _everything,_ bay. I had to be a mum to you, all the while not having ones for myself. I had so much responsibility put on me and, yes, I made some bloody mistakes, and yes, I've made bad decisions. Yes, I put our lives in danger many times, but I did it all to _keep you alive!"_

"You didn't do all that stuff to keep me alive, boofhead!" Bailey snapped. "If you did, you would've told someone what was going on with us sooner." Avalon shook her head. "You were just getting back and mum and dad to justify what you were doing."

"If I told someone what was happening, we would've been split apart!"

"You don't know that!"

"Yes, I do!" Avalon's voice finally dropped from a yell, her face finally softened from the blazing red it turned. She spoke a lot calmer, more calculated, her words even. Avalon's shoulders dropped and she held her hands up in front of her. As if warding off another attack from her sister. "Bay…because of how young you were, because of how _smart_ you are, because of how neat and tidy you are, you would've been taken in by a foster father in a second. But because of how much older I am, I had a lesser chance of being taken in. We would've been split up. I didn't say anything because I didn't want us to be split up. I was scared."

Scared. Bailey couldn't remember the last time she'd seen Avalon scared. Couldn't remember if she'd _ever_ seen Avalon scared. She threw herself head-on into anything that came her way. How was she scared? _Why didn't she tell me?_ Bailey felt all the fight leave her. Felt nothing but love for her sister. And growing understanding. "How come you never told me that before?"

Now Avalon snorted. "And freak you out? I hate to say it, Bay, but you can have a flair for the dramatics every now and then."

"No, I don't," Bailey weakly defensed herself.

They both knew it to be true. Bailey was analytical and deliberate with many of her thoughts and feelings, but there were still many times she could become very emotional. The time she first got her period sprang to mind, making her cringe. Locking herself in the bathroom while Tommy desperately tried to help her, despite his own embarrassment. If that wasn't dramatic, she wasn't sure what counted as dramatic.

"If you freaked out, things would've been hard," Avalon said. "Because then I'd have to admit to myself that what I was doing was horrible for you and I'd have to send you away." Her hands clenched into fists, she lowered her gaze. "And if I had to send you away, I really would've been alone and I would've missed you too much. If anything happened to you, I wanted to be there right next to you, protecting you."

Bailey took in a deep breath. She lowered her chin, felt the tears coming to her eyes. Talk about dramatic. Here she was, doing her best to say everything she'd ever felt and she was the first one to start crying. Typical. "I hated you for a long time," She said. "I mean, I love you, Av, you're my sister. But I still hated you. I hated the fact that you treated me like I was baggage for you to take along with your decisions. I hated you for not letting me be a kid. I hated you for the danger you put us in because of your friends. I hated that you never let me in and did everything on your own. I hated that I felt like a burden to you."

"You weren't a burden to me, Bay."

"But I felt like it." Bailey smoothed her hair back from her face, sniffling loudly. "There's so much I could've helped with but you kept doing everything without me. Even if it had something to do with me. I'm proud of everything you've managed to do, Av, but you still shut me out."

Avalon blinked and tilted her head. "How come you've never told me that before?" She asked.

Bailey blinked back at her. "Tell you what?"

"That you're proud of me."

"I've said it before."

Avalon chuckled and shook her head. "No. No, you've said I was stupid and that you were there for me." Her voice shook. "But not that you were proud. I've had to sit and watch mum and dad dote on you and see you excel with everything and I've said that about you all the time. But I've never heard you say that about me."

A sharp gasp escaped Bailey's lips. She never did? She hadn't said it? How could she have sit and followed along, watching her give them a good life and not say anything? "I…I didn't know I had to…" She ventured to ask the one thing she couldn't do before. "Is that why you're mad at dad? Because of me? Is that why you didn't visit me in the hospital?"

Avalon rolled her eyes. "I've stopped making decisions because of dad ages ago. I stopped caring what he thought." She shrugged. "But if you _really_ want to know the truth…I was basically daddy's little girl until he became very militant in his expectations of me. I used to get my way all the time and the next thing I know, I'm being yelled at because my bed wasn't perfectly made. I started to hate him, and mum kept making excuses for him. And then, you know, we found out about Ryan and Dana and what we were to them. That just made things worse for me. I couldn't handle it."

"I know," Bailey agreed. "You cut yourself off from everyone around you, you only trusted me."

"And you, you kept making friends with everyone around you," Avalon agreed. "That's what I've always liked about you, Bay. That you're always so positive, no matter what. You're always that bright spot for me to lean on. You know I love you and I'll do anything for you."

"And the same for you," Bailey agreed. "You know that."

Avalon smiled and nodded. She grabbed onto Bailey and squeezed her tightly. Bailey wrapped her arms around her sister and hugged her back just as tightly. Finally able to get to a place where they were able to say everything they'd felt about each other. Avalon leaned back and framed Bailey's face, pressing a kiss to her forehead before smoothing her tears away.

"Are you doing crying?" Avalon teased.

"You're crying too," Bailey said, pushing against her sister's shoulders so that she would let go of her. "I'm sorry, Av."

"I love you, Goober," Avalon replied.

Bailey beamed. Her body filled with warmth. They were back on track. Things were going to get better. They were a team again. Then Bailey glanced at her bag and everything that stuck out the top. She chewed her lower lip, placed her hands on her hips. "I need your help," she admitted. Avalon looked at her curiously, turned her head aside and looked at her baby sister out the corner of her eye. "With something I'm doing. I can't let anyone else know, though."

Bailey reached into her bag and pulled out her work, spreading it over her bed. Avalon immediately recognized the skematics in front of her as well as the mechanical parts stuck together that tumbled out along with it. A few loose pieces rolled toward the end of the bed and Bailey grabbed them before they could hit the ground, carefully putting them back in place.

"You're building your own morpher."

A statement, not a question.

Bailey couldn't help but smile. "You don't sound surprised."

"Honestly, Bay, I thought you would've done this when you gave up your Zeo powers," Avalon remarked.

Bailey heaved a huge sigh. How many times had she beaten herself up for that decision? Then again, as far as she could tell, the Zeo Crystal only had enough to make sub-portions of itself for Tommy, Avalon, Tanya, Kat, Adam, and Rocky. If it was possible for anyone else to get one, then Billy certainly would have. And yet he didn't whine or complain about his status as their tech advisor.

Then the two worked together to create and implement the Turbo powers. How could she sit back and continue to watch from the sidelines when something inside her was telling her there was nothing more for her than to be out there protecting people. Creating new powers and weapons was fun and it stretched her mind to learn as much as she could about science and technology. Nothing made her smile more than implementing those new pieces of technology and seeing them succeed in battle.

"I needed to take a step back then," Bailey admitted. "As hard as it was. I really needed to feel what it was like to be normal."

"It didn't last long."

"I'm not normal."

"And it took you this long to figure it out?" Avalon teased. Bailey gave her a look before the girls started to laugh. Then Avalon folded her arms. "Okay, now I'm interested. What do you need?" Bailey twisted her mouth aside and looked at Avalon meaningfully. It took Avalon only a second to figure out what it was she'd be tasked to do. "You need me to steal something, don't you?" She rolled her eyes, dropping her head back so that she could stare at the ceiling, expressing a loud 'ugh'. "Why? Why do you need me to steal something?"

"If there were anyone else, I would've asked them. And you have to admit, you're really good at it."

Avalon smiled.

* * *

 **A/N:** Sorry this took so long. Enjoy!

Thanks to **ChibiDawn23, Adela, and Guest** for reviewing. **  
**


	19. Setting Them Up

**.:18:.**

 _Setting Them Up  
_

* * *

Bailey pressed her back against the wall behind her, listened as the footsteps slowly faded away from her father's office. When the footsteps were far enough away, Bailey poked her head around the corner, watched Miss. Fairweather bury her head in what looked like some sort of a manual. Some sort of readings from their latest training session, she was sure.

Since the Titanium Ranger had shown up, they'd had more and more practice runs to try and take down the new threat though continued to look out for Diabolico. If there was any time they could've kept Jason around, it certainly would've been then. He'd faced Tommy when he was an evil green ranger, he probably had some insight to tell them how to handle things. But since he'd gone back to Angel Grove, communication with him had been scarce. Avalon explained it was due to his trip to Vietnam that he'd planned to visit Trini. If they hadn't spoken to the former yellow ranger in all that time, it wasn't too surprising Jason befell the same fate.

It was the same for most of the rangers. Tommy, they were lucky to get a phone call from every Sunday when he wasn't too busy studying or racing. Trying to get the time change lined up with Kat and Aisha was a nightmare. And Kim was training a lot. They spoke to Rocky and Adam, who were going to college back in Angel Grove, from time to time. But since their teams had ended their tenure, their conversations petered off. It was expected, Bailey reminded herself. They were all growing older and people broke apart. It didn't mean they weren't still a team.

Take her and Avalon for example. They had some difficulties to get through and they had after a hard conversation. Now they were back as the team they'd always been…with Bailey keeping watch while Avalon snuck into their father's office to steal some more information she needed to finish the creation of her morpher. Easy.

Too bad said father was the Captain of a government program that was created to help as many people in Mariner Bay as possible. Meaning, daughters or not, they'd get in a lot of trouble if they got caught. Getting caught was the least of their worries, it was finding everything else they needed that was harder. And if Bailey was going to get her morpher completed, she needed to know where certain metal was being held within the complex and it was going to be a hard thing to find out.

Miss. Fairweather turned the corner and disappeared. Bailey waved her hand, showing off a convoluted signal the sisters had come up with. Once the signal had been shown, Avalon popped out from another connecting hallway and raced to her father's office door. She stuck out her hand, sliding the tip of a switchblade between the lock and the door jamb.

It popped open and she slid inside.

And Bailey waited. And waited. And waited. Waited for Avalon to come back from the office. Still, she didn't reappear, and Bailey was starting to become impatient. She looked at her watch, tapped her feet, and leaned back and forth, trying to find any sign of her sister coming back with the information she needed. Still, nothing.

Finally, Bailey couldn't help herself but slide into the office after her. She quickly and quietly closed the door behind her, finding Avalon standing in the middle of the office with a hand up to her chin, appearing irritated. Bailey wondered if she held a similar expression on her face when Avalon looked up at her.

Bailey threw her hands into the air. "What are you doing?" She asked.

Avalon's eyebrows lifted in response. She dropped her hand and folded her arms. "Last I checked, Bay, I was helping you steal some confidential government information."

"How is that any different from any of the other stuff you stole?"

Avalon gave her a 'duh' look. "I stole drugs, guns, weapons, jewelry, and money. What, out of all that, do you think sounds even remotely like stealing fucking government info? Boofhead."

"What are you doing now?" Bailey glanced around the office. Suddenly realized how immaculate it was. No wonder Av was having trouble finding stuff, Bailey thought. Everything had its place, and everything was in its place. If Captain Mitchell had anything they were looking for, it wouldn't be easy to find. And, honestly, she was starting to wonder if he'd even have it in his office. A safe or a locker maybe, but his actual office? No, another work office made more sense. Being on a computer made more sense.

As Avalon went to the filing cabinet to rifle through the things there, Bailey sat down at her father's computer. She held her breath, hoping there wasn't any sort of password put on it. Dismay made her heart sink when she saw it wasn't the case. Of course, he put a password on his computer. _He's a government official, Bay, he'd be the biggest dill on the ace of the planet if he hadn't had a lock put on his bloody computer._ Bailey closed her eyes, leaning back in the seat.

What would his password be?

The names of his family members, his kids, birthdates would all be ludicrous to have as a password. Even she decided to do a PIN as her password on everything. No birthdays, but a PIN that was meaningful to her and no one else-not even Av-would come close to figuring out. This was a government computer. There had to be something stronger for them to bypass to make sure everything on it was safely guarded. If there wasn't a tracker that'd take her information and immediately call the higher ups. What a great message it'd send to her father. She broke into his computer and then she'd be arrested.

A ranger being arrested. How funny.

Bailey looked over as Avalon eased open a file and started to rifle through the cabinets. Every few seconds she could tilt her head to the side and read the label of something before moving it aside and starting on a new one. _Think, Bay, if you were going to safeguard your computer, what would you do?_ Honestly, she'd have two or three levels of protection on it. Her father probably had more than that.

 _That's it!_

Bailey stretched her arms in front of her and cracked her knuckles. Then she grasped the mouse of his computer and started the process of the computer skills she knew. She knew a lot about alien technology, but she'd been into computers and science and computer science much longer than anyone knew. She'd always been into academics and things that made her stretch her mind further than most could imagine and getting the experience within the Command Center helped boost her confidence.

But, in all actuality, it was her time spent with Billy that helped her. He'd shown her many times—under the strict notes that he it was imperative no one found out what they were doing—his connections with the AGPD, NASADA, and scientists that made it easier for him to gain access to certain codes and computer programs that'd aid him in things he needed to help his work in the Command Center. There was a reason he spent a lot of time there once he lost his powers and there was a lot he kept from the other rangers that he'd told her while they worked to create the Turbo powers.

So much so that it was something Bailey made sure to not forget the danger that also came with it. Effectively, she was going to put a virus on her father's computer to even get past the password barrier. And once that worked out, she would then get to the files about the Lightspeed Rescue team that would give ideas of how the Titanium morpher was created and how the copy was simultaneously created. Once they could get that…

"I reckon I found something," Avalon murmured.

Bailey didn't tear her gaze from her father's computer screen, eyes flickering over the numbers and figures that scattered across the screen. Different windows popped up every few seconds, of which would prompt her to type something in before another one would. A rabbit hole of information she needed to get through before even coming close to the information she needed.

"What?" She asked, not turning her head.

"Information about the Mighty Morphin' Team," Avalon replied. She stepped back, holding an open file in her hands. "About our fight against Ivan Ooze." Her eyebrows pinched together. "About our fight against Master Vile…some of the biggest fights we've had, yeah?"

"What about them?"

"Mm." Avalon pressed her lips together. "There's information on all of us, Bay. All about our pasts and what we were doing up through the time we left the team. Everything about what we were up to in Angel Grove. They even fucking got info on Chase, Summer, and Skye. Their pasts and everything." She shook her head. "The boofhead knew everything we were doing."

"We knew that, Av," Bailey reminded her.

"No. It's an in-depth government file. They know about Jason leaving the team to take care of his uncle, they know about him taking steroids, they know about Kim's eating disorder, about Tommy's adoption and his real family,"—at that, Bailey's head jerked upwards— "About Trini's arranged marriage. All of it."

Bailey chewed her lower lip. Intuitively, she knew they were going to have as much information on them. Especially on her and Avalon. But on the others, knowing that closely. She couldn't help but wonder if it was entirely ranger related or if it was something bigger. Something they—the public—should've known.

Then something struck her. Something she hadn't thought too much of. "Do you think that means—"

Avalon immediately turned and pressed her finger to her lips. Bailey fell silent. Avalon, through her time with the gang, had managed to find hone her senses very well. Or else it was something more primal for her. She could always tell when there was a temperature change down to the specific degree, always felt the change in atmosphere, knew when someone was coming up on her. Had a sixth sense about danger that was coming. Even if she couldn't tell what it was until it was too late.

Bailey strained, listening hard. Nothing. She wasn't sure what Avalon heard, but it was something that'd certainly gotten her attention. A closing door. Or just a sense of dread. No matter what it was, when Avalon sensed something was wrong, something was always wrong.

"Someone's coming," Avalon said. She tossed the folder back into the filing cabinet and started to move everything back in place. Bailey's heart hammered across her chest. No! She wasn't even close to getting what she needed. And how long would it take for everything to shut down. "Bay, we have to move, now!"

"I know!" Bailey hissed back. She rapidly started to shut down as many windows as she could. There were a few that would take longer, needing to get to the end of their programs before they could be finished. She looked at the door, watching Avalon continue to lean over. Then she hovered behind Bailey, staring at the computer screen. "Av, the door."

"What is this?"

"Nothing! Just…" Bailey shook her head. She should've asked Billy what to do if she had to do a quick shutdown. He worked on some of the fastest computers in the universe, she was stuck with the more primitive ones that everyone in the world had to use. If she had the same, she'd upgrade every computer along the Aqua Base. "Keep watch of the door."

"Like that'll make the difference to whomever is coming."

"Boofhead," Bailey murmured. Still, she continued to fly over the keyboard as she quickly as possible. Her eyes darted towards the door every few seconds. She saw a shadow appear at the door. Just as the door opened, Bailey shot her foot under the desk and kicked at the plug.

Captain Mitchell opened the door and stared at his youngest daughters. Avalon pressed an arm into Bailey's back. Their silent signal that she'd do all the talking. Bailey continued to press her foot against the plug that slowly yet surely started to slide out of the socket.

Captain Mitchell took a deep breath from his nose, his hand visibly tightening on the doorknob. "Is there any reason why you are in my office, unattended?" His eyes then flickered to Bailey. She gulped, pressing her finger against her glasses to push them up her nose. Hopefully the computer screen wasn't reflected in them. "And why you're on my computer."

"We didn't realize it was your office until we got in here," Avalon explained, lying smoothly. She nodded to Bailey. "We were looking for a quiet place to talk and all the other conference rooms were booked."

Captain Mitchell raised an eyebrow. "And what is wrong with your quarters?"

Avalon continued to keep her gaze on her father. Bailey looked back and forth between the two, suddenly struck with how similar the two were to each other. "I believe you told me that we weren't allowed to eat in our quarters. Let alone use them as social areas. Or, at least, I'm sure that's what Jason remembers."

A roll of her eyes made Captain Mitchell turn his attention to Bailey. The former ranger gulped as he let go of the door and moved steadily toward them. Bailey held her breath, watching him come closer and closer. The lasting programs continued to run on the screen. Numbers flew by. Her hand tightened on the mouse. Finally, she pressed her foot against the plug hard enough to knock it out of the wall. The screen went black the moment Captain Mitchell rounded the back of her seat. Hands clasped together behind his back, he cleared his throat.

Bailey immediately leapt to her feet and moved to stand behind her big sister. She looked up at her father form beneath her lashes and glasses. Wondering if he could see the guilt on her face. He looked at her, at the computer screen, then back at her. "And what was it you were doing on my computer?" He asked.

This time, it was Bailey who came up with the excuse. "We were just…uh…trying to get some information on you," she said. Captain Mitchell raised an eyebrow. "For…a birthday party we were planning."

"Birthday party?" He didn't look convinced.

Sticking to her guns, Bailey nodded. "Mhm. Yeah. That."

"You're planning a party for my birthday?"

"Yep." Bailey popped the 'p' on the word. Flashed as warm of a smile as she could. Avalon, on the other hand, grasped Bailey's elbow and discreetly pinched her. Bailey simply smiled wider. Captain Mitchell looked back and forth between his daughters.

He gave one shake of his head. "Don't get on my computer again," he said. "My office is off-limits. If you are looking for any place to converse about what it is you need to talk about, ask Miss. Fairweather or any of my other associates. Is that understood."

"Yes, sir," Avalon chirped.

Now Bailey pinched her on the arm. Captain Mitchell's mustache twitched. His eyes crinkled at the corners. Almost as if he were amused. Nevertheless, he held out his arm and motioned for his daughters to leave. "If you don't mind, I need you in the drawing room with the rest of the rangers. There is an important matter Ii need to speak to all of you about."

Bailey nodded and led the way from the office. She looped her arm through Avalon's and leaned close to her sister. Used her strength to keep herself up. Bailey's legs quaked so hard she was sure their father could see it. Avalon, despite having a shorter gait, moved her legs, quickly pulling the two away from their father who walked at a leisurely pace behind them.

"Birthday?" Avalon pursed her lips. She brought her hand up to her chest, effectively squeezing Bailey's elbow within the crook of her arm. "Do you remember when dad's birthday is?"

Bailey shrugged. Honestly, she didn't find that point to be too important when she was coming up with their excuse. Just that they needed to get away before he figured out what they were doing. "As far as I knew, he didn't have a birthday. Mum says he never celebrates it."

"So, we now have to work on setting up a birthday party for a bloke who may as well have been born bald, with a mustache, and no sense of humor, who doesn't celebrate birthdays?" Avalon smiled, unable to wash away the irony of the situation. "Cheers."

"Cheers," Bailey agreed.

The two entered the drawing room as the rangers all gathered around. Everyone but Kelsey. The yellow ranger was missing as Bailey sat down. Avalon sat next to her, glancing up at Captain Mitchell when he silently passed by, moving to stand at the head of the table. Then they heard it, rapid footsteps coming their way.

Joel made a show of sticking out his arm, showing off a wrist-watch. "Three, two, one," he counter. Just as the last word escaped his mouth, Kelsey flew into the drawing room and launched herself into a chair. It slid across the floor to Chad, who grabbed the arm to steady her.

"Whoa!" She cried, eyes flashing. A baleful laugh escaped her as she pressed her hands to the table top, looking at her friends. "Looks like I made it just in time!" Bailey smiled. She loved Kelsey's energy. It reminded her of a mixture of Aisha and Kimberly, though even more of a storm. "So, what's so urgent?"

"Rangers," Captain Mitchell formally introduced the meeting. Immediately, they all stood up, clasping their hands behind their backs. Militant, as they were to be when he addressed them. "I have a very important assignment for you." He looked each ranger in the eye. Long enough for them to either continue to look back at him—Carter, Dana, Chad, and Avalon—or look away—Joel, Kelsey, and Bailey. "I want you to…take a day off."

Silence stretched. Bailey's face screwed up. She waited for the joke to land. Waited for him to say he was joking. Anything. But…a day off? It wasn't heard of. Not when the Titanium ranger was running around. Joel, on the other hand, decided to break the silence himself by tilting his head back and laughing obnoxiously.

Carter and Dana exchanged smirks as Joel continued to laugh. He finally, abruptly stopped himself. "Nice joke, Captain." He waited for Captain Mitchell to crack a smile. He continued to stare at him. "You kidding, right?"

Finally, and for the first time, Captain Mitchell smiled. A note of pride was in his eyes. Avalon turned her head but, wisely, Bailey thought, kept her mouth shut from a sarcastic comment she was sure was coming. "Absolutely not. You all work very hard and you deserve it." Silence continued to mount from the rangers.

Bailey's muscles twitched. She was ready to go. Ready to have some fun. Ready to do anything that wasn't the rangers, wasn't worrying over any attacks, wasn't her homework. _Besides,_ she thought glumly. _You have a birthday party to plan._

"Do anything you want," Captain Mitchell pressed when no one moved, in fear it was all a joke. "Dismissed."

"Well." Chad was the first one to speak. "Who's ready for a trip to the beach?"

"Oh!" Kelsey, excitedly, clapped her hands together. "That's where I was headed." She leaned over to address her friends, looking them in the eye. "And, you guys don't mind if I bring a friend along, right?" She turned to the doorway of the drawing room and started to lean back and forth, looking for someone. "Actually, I think I may have left him around here somewhere."

Captain Mitchell made a low sound of disapproval. Biting her lower lip, Kelsey turned back to her boss, knowing just how dangerous it was. She held up her hands. "Just a quick visit, Captain. I promise." Footsteps headed to them, a young blond man coming in. "Oh! There he is!" Kelsey placed her hand on his shoulder. "Guys, this is my friend Ryan, Ryan these are _my_ friends; Carter, Dana, Joel, Chad, Bailey, Avalon, and our boss, Captain Mitchell." She pointed to them in turn, prompting Ryan to nod and smile with each one.

"Hi." Ryan waved around the room. "It's nice to meet you all." He nodded towards Captain Mitchell, shrank back against the intense gaze he was under. "Captain," he ventured with a respective nod.

Captain Mitchell silently nodded back.

"Uh, Kelsey said you all wouldn't mind if I came to the beach with you," Ryan continued. He didn't seem to notice the wistful expressions that passed over Dana's and Captain Mitchell's faces. Neither did anyone else. "I hope that's alright. And, Captain, I'm sorry for barging in here." He gestured feebly towards Kelsey, who appeared just as nervous as he did. "Kelsey said it was okay."

"It's my fault," Kelsey agreed.

Captain Mitchell held up his hands. "Hey, don't make me stop you from wanting to have a good time," he said. "I understand Kelsey does have her moments of being impulsive and it can be difficult to find your way out of that storm." Kelsey lowered her head. "I feel sorry for whomever wants to pick a fight with her."

Kelsey smiled shyly, lifting her head.

Chad reached out, placing his hand on Ryan's shoulder, giving it a friendly shake. "Hey, the more the merrier," he declared. "This is one of the few days we have off, we're glad to share it with anyone if it means getting away from here."

"Yeah, it's not every day we get a day off and I'm not going to miss another minute of it!" Joel thrust his fist in the air, leading the charge of the rangers to go out and find some fun in a day that was usually filled with training, workouts, and debriefings of their old monster fights.

It was a day off and they were going to make the best of it.

Ryan smiled, following the rangers out of the drawing room.

* * *

 **A/N:** These next few chapters are going to be kind of slow regarding having these rangers finally, get to know each other. It's much needed and is form an episode of PRLR that I absolutely enjoyed.

Also, I don't quite believe that Dana or Captain Mitchell would recognize Ryan after so long, especially since he'd be an adult at this time. And, it brings in more drama for the rangers, lol.

And, dude, I love writing Bay. I love writing her being so similar to Av but also having her own personality and it not taking away from Av's strong personality as well. Bay has really matured since she first appeared, it's fun to write.

Thanks to **Adela, ChibiDawn23, RiveraJ88, Alex B Goode, Yunuen, and Guest** for reviewing.


	20. Captain Mitchell's Day Off (1)

**.:19:.**

 _Captain Mitchell's Day Off_

* * *

Captain Mitchell, for the first time, didn't do any work.

He didn't check his emails.

Didn't answer his constantly ringing phone.

Cancelled all his meetings.

He couldn't do work. Not when there was too much at stake, and he couldn't wrap his head around it. The Titanium Power Ranger was working his ranger team harder than he thought. When the Titanium Ranger first arrived, it was out of nowhere. He should've seen it coming, if he were being honest. Following the previous ranger teams, their histories and their battles, he should've known there was an evil ranger of some sort coming.

It happened like clockwork, was a staple of the villains they were desperate to stop the rangers from foiling their plans. Wanted to keep them from making it so that they couldn't take over the world. Everything they were doing wasn't working, every plan they'd come up with ultimately failed. They were able to stop the monster of the day but after that, there were no successes.

They needed to work differently, come up with different plans. And that was why Captain Mitchell was taking time away from the Aquabase, away from the rangers, and away from everything that reminded him of one of the toughest times of his life. It snuck up on him quicker than he thought it would. Most times, he was able to see the time of year coming. Could see the looks Dana would give him when no one else was paying attention.

Felt her pain.

It was another reason why he recommended they take a day off. He couldn't look at Dana knowing he made the toughest decision of his life without a second of thought. A decision he still wasn't sure was the right one to take. But how was one supposed to make a decision in that moment? A car crash, both of his kids dangling by their arms, desperately grasping onto him. Needed him to save them. He was their father for God's sake.

What was the choice to make? Watch as he lost his grip and both of his children died? Let go of one to save the other and watched as they died? Screaming in abject horror at having to make that decision? Or, literally, sell their soul to the devil? He had been stuck in a lose-lose situation.

Even as Captain Mitchell sat in his bedroom on the end of his bed, head held in his hands, he replayed that night. Could hear the soft snores of his children as they came back from the hospital from visiting their mother. It had been a long, exhausting day. His wife had been grateful to see them, unable to do nothing more than sing quietly to them, listen to their stories, and what happened at school. She didn't have the energy to do anything more than that.

The chemo wasn't working, she was getting worse, and it was only a matter of time until things went even further South than they already were. They were already speaking Hospice Care every time the kids left the room. It was coming sooner than they thought, it was their duty that night to explain their mother wouldn't be around much longer. But he'd taken one look at his wife and knew it wasn't going to happen. They were too happy. It'd have to wait for another day.

On their drive home, Captain Mitchell listened as his children babbled on, talking about how much fun they had with their mother, willed them not to ask when she was going to come home. That was the only wish that came true for him that day.

It started to rain.

Captain Mitchell kept his eyes on the road, but his mind was going a mile a minute, wondering when the preparations he and his wife had started for her inevitable passing was going to go into effect. Wondered what he was going to tell his children when it happened. Wondered what the fallout was going to be, how was he going to handle it when he was alone? When his children looked up to him for everything?

It wasn't that he didn't want his children with him. But…he'd always had a partner to help him. He had always been as much of a team player as he was a leader. How did he lead children that he, honestly, didn't see too much when his work pulled him away?

It was then that Captain Mitchell noticed the car pulling heavily to the right as he rounded a curve. He shot his attention back to the road, but it was too late. The wheels skidded across the gravel as he pulled hard on the wheel, hoped to correct himself. Too many factors against him; he reacted too slowly, the rain made things too slick, the gravel didn't provide enough traction, his backend swung too far.

"Daddy?"

He could hear Dana's small voice, fear tinging it as she woke up. Captain Mitchell looked in the rearview mirror, saw her head poke up while Ryan stared out the window, eyes as wide as they could go. When had they woken up?

The thought briefly passed through Captain Mitchell's mind before he completely lost control. The car rolled. He felt himself bouncing along with it before he was suddenly flung free, his seatbelt ripping. He heard his children screaming, their high-pitched voices mixing in with his own terrified shrieks. He slid down the side of the mountain, feet frantically scrabbling for a foothold. Loose rocks and dirt fell around him.

Finally, he felt himself jerk to a stop, hands stretching above his head. Captain Mitchell looked up, let out a sigh of relief when he saw the large branch protruding from the side of the mountain he grabbed onto. He could still hear his children screaming, felt them cling onto his arms and legs as they fell by. Relief swarmed Captain Mitchell for a second—his children were safe—before the reality of their situation became clear. There was nothing but darkness beneath his dangling feet, stretching a long way beneath him. The road was too far above him to climb back up with the added weight of his children holding him down.

"Help!" Captain Mitchell screamed. His older, deeper voice filled the canyon, overlapping Ryan's screams and Dana's cries. "Somebody, help us!" he shouted over and over needed to have his voice heard. Needed to save his children. The answer to his problems came to him quickly, even if his wife was gone, his children were his life, he couldn't have anything happen to them.

He'd give up his life for them, no matter what.

Over and over he shouted, screamed, strained to hold on. His muscles burned, in his throat and in his arms. And yet, he still continued to hold on. He had to make it out, not just for himself, but for his kids. Rain continued to batter them, making his hands slick. Every few seconds he had to change his grip on the log, working to keep himself up. Dana clung to his neck, crying quietly. Ryan, who was usually the quieter of the two, was screaming at the top of his lungs.

"Dad! I'm slipping!" Ryan shouted, his tiny voice sounding humongous as it echoed through the canyon.

"No!" Captain Mitchell wrenched his eyes shut, could feel his son slowly slipping down his leg, despite how hard he held on. Captain Mitchell grabbed Dana and shifted her upward, resting her weight onto his shoulder. He just needed to get an arm free, just needed to reach down to him. "No! Just hold, on, buddy! Hold on!"

Ryan continued to slip downward, falling over Captain Mitchell's knee and toward his foot. Captain Mitchell leaned down, strained to reach his son, the movement shot him down even further. "No!" Ryan held tightly to Captain Mitchell's shoe, holding on so tightly that despite the lowered temperatures, Captain Mitchell could feel it in his bones.

"I can't," Ryan shrieked desperately. "I'm slipping!"

"Ryan!" Dana called.

"Dana!" He called back.

"Somebody," Captain Mitchell bellowed. Tears mixed with the rain water that fell down his face. "Please help. Somebody, help me."

 _"I can help you!"_ The voice came as a harsh whisper. A voice so sudden that Captain Mitchell first looked up at the road to see who was going to save them. Then he turned aside and gasped, seeing the demonic presence in front of him. A gold and orange looking creature that he could simultaneously see through and was as solid as he was himself. Captain Mitchell knew who the demon was, heard all about them—Diabolico.

Dana screamed and turned away, putting her tear-soaked face into her father's neck, hugged him tightly. "I want to go home, daddy," she sobbed. "I want to go home."

"Get away from us," Captain Mitchel growled. He lifted his leg once more, trying in vain to reach his son. The movement jerked Ryan even further down. "No! No, no, no, no, no!"

"If I save his life," Diabolico pointed a sharp finger down towards Ryan, who continued to struggle. Then, he slowly pointed toward himself. "He belongs to me."

"Never," Captain Mitchell growled.

"Dad!"

"Daddy!" Dana shrieked.

"Make your choice," Diabolico hissed.

Captain Mitchell felt his shoe slowly slide off. He looked down just to see his shoe come free, Ryan's hands slide off, and watch his son start to fall. His eyes widened, breath caught in his throat before he could find the strength to scream. "NO!"

Ryan continued to fall.

Desperate, Captain Mitchell spoke before he could stop himself. "Save him!" He pleaded. "Save him!"

In a rush of gold light, Diabolico swooped down and grabbed Ryan, gathered him in his arms. Ryan's screams abruptly stopped as he clutched the demonic figure. He looked up at his dad, his eyes locking on with his son's, before his son and Diabolico disappeared before his very eyes.

Again, Captain Mitchell screamed.

No matter what, he'd lost his son.

And as he sat in his room that night, Captain Mitchell felt nothing short of confusion. Didn't know, if he were given the chance again, what he would've done different. Or if there truly was anything else that could've been done. Had he tried to save her, he may have dropped Dana and had to make that decision to have her taken away from him.

It was worse, knowing he simply continued to make the same mistakes. With Avalon and Bailey around, it was a harsh reminder of all the pain he suffered and put the same suffering on those around him. Dana learned the hard way about her half-sisters, learned the hard way about what really happened to her mother, and Captain Mitchell continued to hold everyone at arm's length, burying himself in his work.

In his past.

He had to get away.

Standing up, Captain Mitchell went to the phone in the corner of the room and picked it up. He dialed Miss. Fairweather's office number. She picked up in a second. "Something's come up and I need to leave the office."

"Of course, sir," Miss. Fairweather said quickly. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Yes, I need a plane to take me to Angel Grove. There's someone I need to see."

"Right away, sir. Is anyone going to be going with you? Do you need my assistance?"

"No thank you, Miss. Fairweather. There's nothing more that I need. The rangers are taking a day off and I aim to take one as well." He nodded to himself. "As a matter of fact, I want you to take the day off as well. Take some time for yourself."

Miss. Fairweather paused in surprise. Her voice was soft as she said, "Thank you, sir. I'll…I'll do that once I get some more of my work done."

"No." Captain Mitchell's voice turned firm. He held the phone tightly in his hand, sucking in a deep breath, knowing he was acting out of the ordinary. The looks on the rangers' faces said it all. _But they sure had raced out of the AquaBase faster than I've seen them do a speed run._ "I want you to take the day off now. No more work. And that's a direct order."

"Yes, sir. Right away, sir. I'll get you that plane and then…take the day off."

"Thank you, Miss. Fairweather."

Captain Mitchell hung up the phone and went to his closet to change. If he was going to have a tough conversation, he at least wanted to be comfortable when doing it. Besides, he couldn't remember the last time when he was able to have a full day for himself.

* * *

Captain Mitchell stepped into NASADA'S hangar, eyes sweeping over the rocket docked in its bay. It certainly had seen better days. There were little dents all over the sides of the rocket, almost as if it had been buffeted by meteors when it went up into space.

Captain Mitchell remembered watching the news reports on the rocket racing into the sky. The news said it was a routine test flight, but he knew the truth. The rangers were racing off into space to stop Maligore and Dark Spectre from taking over the galaxy as well as searched for Zordon. It was an, ultimately, failed mission. Angel Grove had become destroyed much more than any of the citizens had seen it before, Astronema had almost taken over, and the power rangers were almost destroyed.

They'd revealed their identities to the public after the citizens had stood up, finding their own sense of power within the powerless to protect their home. And yet, it was Zordon's sacrifice that ultimately determined the fate of the world.

And none of it would've been possible had certain events not gone into effect. If he, himself, hadn't known about the existence of aliens in the universe over the years, if he hadn't had started to work on his own set of powers ages ago, if he hadn't had been so careless…

"Captain Mitchell?" Captain Mitchell turned around to see an older man with snow white hair atop his head and resting along his mustache, stretching to a beard standing behind him. The man pushed his glasses up his nose and stuck out his hand. "Good to see you again."

"It seemed that you didn't recognize me," Captain Mitchell remarked, shaking General Norquist's hand.

General Norquist grinned. "Well, what can I say? Time hasn't really been on our side as of late." He motioned toward his head, making Captain Mitchell instinctively run a hand over his balding head. He laughed to himself, prompting General Norquist to laugh as well. "I must say I was surprised to receive a phone call from you, Will." He started back from the way he came, prompting Captain Mitchell to follow him. "I didn't think I'd ever see you in Angel Grove."

"I have my own ties here," Captain Mitchell said. "Not ones that I've visited too often, unfortunately." He took a deep breath. "It's a very hard time for me right now and there's a lot I needed to get away from in Mariner Bay." He tried not to let the irony of his words encompass him. Everything started because of wanting to get away from things he'd tried to hide.

"And you decided to come to _Angel Grove_ to get away?" General Norquist look at him in surprise. He chuckled to himself. "I understand that since the Astro Rangers have stopped Astronema things in Angel Grove have been peaceful, but that's not to say that Angel Grove doesn't have its own fair share of problems at the moments."

"More monsters?"

"No, but a lot of reconstruction needs to be done. Looking into the hundreds of millions that the city just doesn't have. Not to mention the emergency evacuation systems we have put in place, the funerals, the press…it's a lot of things that need to be taken into consideration." General Norquist led Captain Mitchell off the floor of NASADA and into the office spaces. "That's not what you were looking into either, was it?"

"No, it isn't," Captain Mitchell agreed. He cleared his throat. "There's someone here who has worked with you multiple times before. I'm sure he's here now. Especially with the revelation of the Astro Rangers's identities. There's some things I want to pick his brain about and he's the only one I know would understand." He paused. "Especially as he's the one who helped me perfect what is now the powers that empower my Lightspeed Rescue team."

"Ah, yes, project Lightspeed." General Norquist's grin widened. "Taking not so ordinary citizens and thrusting them into a not so ordinary world to determine how they would be to protect the city from the monsters and demons we haven't yet even thought we'd ever face."

"Exactly. It was an ambitious idea."

"Tell me, how has your progress been?"

General Norquist opened the door to his office and motioned for Captain Mitchell to go inside before following him in. Captain Mitchell sat across from his desk. Captain Mitchell cleared his throat and crossed his legs. "It's going," he said slowly. "I've had a lot of success at the beginning of my trials with project Lightspeed. Though we'd hit a snag as of late."

"A new ranger?" General Norquist guessed. He nodded when Captain Mitchell briefly closed his eyes, remembering the viciousness of the Titanium Ranger. "I'm surprised it took this long, to be honest. It comes like clockwork. There's always one or more ranger that comes out of the woodwork as the enemy you're working against tends to figure out what would be the biggest weakness against the ranger team that's current. It's happened with the Mighty Morphin' team, it's happened with the Zeo team, the Astro Rangers, Lost Galaxy…there's always a new ranger that appears. What happened with this one?"

"This one has the same capabilities of my team of rangers," Captain Mitchell explained. "Because my original Titanium Morpher was stolen."

General Norquist's eyebrows shot upwards. "Original morpher?"

"Yes. I created the Titanium morpher along with the other rangers' morphers, in case I was able to find another person to round out the team."

"I assume you were holding it for either of your daughters?"

"That was the original plan, yes, however Bailey has given up her powers and I'm afraid Avalon is a bit of a loose cannon to, currently, wield the morpher."

"I would have to, respectfully, disagree with you, Captain." Captain Mitchell turned in his seat to face Billy Cranston, who stood in the doorway of the office. "In my experience, Avalon's being a lose canon is precisely why she's a good ranger." He reached out and shook Captain Mitchell's hand. A ghost of a smile came to his lips. "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

* * *

 **A/N:** I bet you all didn't expect to see Billy so soon. First Jason and now Billy. But it puts Captain Mitchell in a bit of a tough spot _and_ partially explains why Billy stayed away for so long. Sorry for the wait on an update.

Thanks to **Guest, Adela, ChibiDawn23, and Guest** for reviewing.


	21. Isolating (2)

**.:20:.**

 _Isolating_

* * *

"You're not coming with us?" Joel looked at Carter as if he'd grown a second head. So much so that he took a step back and looked Carter up and down before reaching out his hand.

Carter immediately ducked. It was his turn to look like Joel had grown a second head out of his neck. "What are you doing?" The red ranger demanded.

"Checking to see you don't have a fever. Or some sort of monster taking you over." Joel planted his hands on his hips. "What idiot doesn't decide to take the day off to _actually take the day off_? I don't know if you've noticed, Carter, but this is the only moment of freedom we've ever had from Captain Mitchell."

"But it doesn't give me the day off from being a fire fighter," Carter pointed out. "Or from my training. There's more to life than enjoying the beach."

"Not much," Kelsey pointed out, poking her head into the boys' sleeping chambers. She took a cursory glance around to be sure none of them were in the middle of dressing—not that it'd slow her down very much—before stepping in. "Believe me, Carter, when you see how much fun we're going to have, you'll be jealous you didn't come with us." She folded her arms, smiling smugly. "There's more to life than being a stick in the mud."

Carter rolled his eyes. "I'm not a stick in the mud." He turned to Chad, who sat calmly on the end of his bed, tying his shoe laces together. "Am I?"

"Uhhh…" Chad leaned back on his hands, dropping his feet to the floor. "It _is_ a little weird that you're not coming with us. I mean, we're supposed to be a team and—"

"—I don't think it's a team activity to go to the beach," Carter said dryly. Honestly, had he known it would cause so much of an issue to decide that he wanted to get some more training in, he would've kept his mouth shut. Joel could be a bit of a drama queen at times, but he didn't think Kelsey and Chad—well, he didn't think _Chad_ would get on his case, too. "And besides, I don't like sand."

Kelsey snorted, still holding her arms firmly across her chest. "You'll throw your life on the line in some of the most dangerous situations and suffer through some of the hottest temperatures you can ever feel and you _don't like sand?"_

"Well, when you say it like _that_ it sounds—"

"—Stupid?" Joel broke in.

Carter glared at him, making Joel's grin widen. He shook his head and turned on his heel. "Look, people treat days off differently. You like to go run in the sand and I like to get some work outs in that I don't usually have the time for."

"So, you admit it? You're a stick in the mud."

Joel burst out laughing as Carter rolled his eyes once more, throwing his hands in the air. Chad and Kelsey, having a bit more tact, laughed quietly to themselves.

Joel then looked over when Dana poked her head into the doorway. "Is everything alright?" She asked. "Aren't we going to the beach?" She stepped up next to Kelsey, adjusting the sarong tied around her hips.

"Yes, _we're_ going to the beach," Joel said pointedly. "But our fearless leader here thinks that it's better suited to keep working at the fire department today."

Dana gave Joel a blank look. "Well, being a firefighter is really important, Joel," she pointed out. She made a grand gesture with her hand. "I mean, if your plane were to suddenly fall from the sky and take a nosedive, crash to the ground and burst into flames, who would you want to come to your rescue?"

Carter grinned.

Joel scowled at her. "Now, why do you have to go and make sense like that?" He threw his hands into the air. "Here I am, trying to shame Carter into coming to the beach with us and you singlehanded ruin my plans with logic."

Dana smiled serenely. "Well, Joel." She stepped forward, placed her hand on Joel's shoulder. "It's not that hard." She adjusted her towel in her arms and changed focused. "It's just too bad you're not coming with us, Carter. It's the best day to go in a long while and Kelsey really wants us to get to know her friend."

"Yeah!" Kelsey agreed. "I think you all would really like this guy! And we have to socialize more than just with each other and all the other soldiers here."

There was a moment of silence as Carter didn't answer, seemingly too dazed to respond. Joel's eyebrows furrowed. He leaned over, followed Carter's gaze, then smirked to himself when he leaned back. Joel caught Chad's eye and the two did their best not to burst out laughing. Though, looking at Kelsey once more proved she had noticed the same thing.

It was too bad, Joel realized, that Carter wasn't going to the beach with them. It'd been too funny to watch the red ranger become increasingly flustered as he spent the day with the pink ranger in her—what Joel had to admit—flattering bathing suit. Who knew the pink ranger had a body to show under all her staunch button downs and rigorous work-minded attire.

Even the smile on her face was much more relaxed and casual than the almost disparaging look she gave everyone while she was busy with work. Joel twisted his mouth to the side, suddenly annoyed. He would've enjoyed spending the whole day making fun of Carter for his not-so-secret infatuation with the pink ranger—honestly, he wondered how Carter managed to not know the rest of them were starting to give him the side eye.

"Carter?" Dana waved her hand in front of the red ranger's face. "Are you alright?"

He jerked his head back and cleared his throat. "Yes, I'm fine," he replied. Then he nodded to the others. "I'll have to catch up with you later."

"Well, if you're sure," Chad said, finally standing up. "We'll just see you later." He patted Carter on the shoulder as he passed, making the red ranger nod in agreement. Joel simply shrugged and followed Chad, Kelsey, and Dana out of the boys' room.

He looked over as Avalon and Bailey walked up, both dressed simply in a hooded jacket, swimsuits, shorts, and water shoes. "You lot ready to go?" Avalon asked.

Joel couldn't help but blurt out. "You're actually coming with us?"

Avalon lifted an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't we? We all have the day off, right?"

Joel gave her a 'duh' look. "Maybe because since you got here you've done nothing but isolate yourselves. Half the time I wouldn't know what you look like since you're always so far gone." Then he waved a hand with Bailey. "I don't like her face. I see it enough from the way she grins evilly at me after we do time trials." Bailey simply smiled once more. "See! Like that!"

"Okay, okay, okay, let's get going before we all decide to stick around and get some training done," Kelsey said, waving her hands. She then briskly rubbed her palms together. "I'm ready to hit the beach and hit some waves."

Avalon's eyes immediately lit up. "Now you're speaking me language," she remarked.

* * *

Carter looked behind him, watching as Hunter and Andrews slowly made their way up the hill, following his footsteps. They gasped for air as they went, slowly coming up to Carter's side, who silently jogged in place. Once they reached his side, Carter nodded and said, "Okay, let's keep going."

"Keep going?" Hunter repeated. "I'm exhausted."

"Yeah, it's not every day we all get to have super powers that makes us more fit," Andrews added. He stretched out on the patch of grass beside them, prompting Carter to stop jogging, placing his hands on his hips. Andrews closed his eyes, bringing his hands up to rest on his chest. "Is that how it works? I've heard that's how it works."

Carter shrugged.

He wasn't quite sure, if he were being honest. Not to mention there were more than enough reasons for it to be true. Once Carter morphed for the first time, her certainly did feel there was something different in him, something coursing through his veins that hadn't been there before. And since then, they did nothing more than continue to improve with pushing their bodies to the max.

Looking at his time trials from before morphing and after, it was unmistakable. Something made him stronger. And while it was something extraordinary, Carter wasn't going to rely on that power. He needed to keep his mind as strong as his body and if that meant extra training, so be it. But Hunter and Andrews probably hadn't expected things to be so difficult.

"I don't think about it, too much," he said.

Hunter looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You have a set of powers that some people would _kill_ to be able to have, but you don't think about it? What about when you're actually out there, fighting?"

"Then I'm thinking that I need to keep the city safe," Carter pointed out. "Just as I do when I'm working in the firehouse with you guys."

"But you're never at the firehouse." Andrews opened his eyes and stuck out his hand. Hunter grabbed it, hauling Andrews to his feet. He noticed Carter's gaze and shook his head. "You can't say you work each job evenly. You're at that base more than you're at the fire house. I'm surprised Chief Lawson hasn't fired you yet."

Andrews nudged Hunter on the arm, making the two chuckle. Carter, on the other hand, folded his arms and pursed his lips. Licked them. Looked away. Then he looked at his shoes for a long moment, before turning his gaze back to his friends.

"Oh, come on, Grayson, you know we're just joking," Hunter said, noticing the apprehension that radiated off the red ranger. "Chief Lawson would never fire you."

"Thanks," Carter replied flatly. "That gives me great comfort." But he couldn't keep the thoughts from his mind as he moved to catch his breath. There were more than enough troubles he thought of, having to work through his tenure as a ranger and as a fire fighter. Especially considering it certainly cut down on any social life he may have had. Not that he _had_ much of a social life, if he were being honest.

It wasn't something he considered very often; he had his fire fighter buddies to have a drink with after work and when he was on his 48-off. But that was before answering the call of duty and becoming the leader of the power rangers. Before his 48-off meant 48-on of being a ranger and vice-versa. And the monsters didn't give him a chance to take a break.

They came up every day. The days blending in together as monsters continued to attack Mariner Bay. And now, here he was with a day to do whatever they wanted and he wanted to take some time to make sure he was up to date on all of his training. There was nothing wrong with that. It meant he was disciplined. It meant he was diligent.

It meant he was able to bring his friends into a life they wouldn't otherwise know.

"But I _do_ have to say that you're a bit crazy considering you gave up a day at the beach to drag our asses all around the park," Hunter continued, making the boys laugh again.

This time, Carter joined in on their laughter. "Well, you're right about me dragging you," he pointed out. "You guys are seriously slowing me down." With that, he started to run once more, grinning to himself when he heard his friends' footsteps behind him. "Come on, guys. Let's see if you have what it takes to take on a power ranger!"

And they continued running along the path through the park, going two more times before Carter finally allowed them a reprieve. The three stopped at a grassy knoll and while Andrews and hunter bent over, placing their hands on their knees to catch their breath, Carter put his hands on his hips, looking out over the city. Mariner Bay was calm now, but, chances were, it wouldn't' take too long before things managed to blow up in their faces once more.

Monster attacks were a daily part of life.

So was the tension that continuously rested in Carter's shoulders and backs. So was the feeling of being unable to get a good night's rest due to keeping himself from the precipice of falling in a deep sleep. If he gave into the fatigue, he wouldn't be ready to go at a moment's notice. He had to be at the top of his game.

He had to be—

"I thought I gave you direct orders to take the day off." The voice behind him made Carter's shoulders tense almost immediately. They relaxed when Carter turned around and found Captain Mitchell standing behind him. Relaxed even further when he saw how casually dressed his boss was from having seen him hours before.

"Sir," Carter replied quickly. He brought his hand up to the side of his head in a salute. Captain Mitchell paused for a moment before doing the same. They dropped their hands at the same time, allowing Carter to step back and introduce his friends. "This is Hunter and Andrews. They work with me at the firehouse."

"I've heard a lot about you," Captain Mitchell said, shaking their hands.

Carter eyed him carefully. He couldn't remember the last time he'd mentioned his friends to Captain Mitchell. Then thought better of it. Not that he didn't imagine he'd told his boss, but due to the information Dana had on him when they first met. There was more than enough information on him that they'd have. They probably knew everything they knew about the people he socialized with, to make sure he was a good fit for it.

A good background check.

"You have?" Hunter looked apprehensive. "Well." He looked to Andrews, who also appeared uneasy. "Then I hope you know that as candidates in the firehouse, there were times when we had to do some less than stellar—"

Hunter broke off when Captain Mitchell held up his hand. "No need to explain, son, I understand." Captain Mitchell then turned his gaze back to Carter. "What I don't understand is breaking a direct order that your officer has given you."

Carter blinked once. "Sir?"

"Everyone else has gone to the beach. Even Avalon and Bailey have decided to attend. And…as well as that very spirited young man that Kelsey has decided to bring along to the Aqua Base."

"Wait!" Andrews held up his hand. He slapped it to Carter's shoulder, shaking his shoulder firmly. "Someone else got to see the AquaBase and you haven't shown us yet? Where's the love, man?"

Carter hesitated. He shot a look towards Captain Mitchell. Truth be told, he wasn't sure he liked the idea of merging his two lives together. He didn't know what he'd do if he had to work along with the fire house while acting as a ranger. Or vice versa. They had the same goals in saving people and protecting the city but to have to switch his mind back and forth with it.

"We'd be glad to meet your co-workers," Captain Mitchell agreed. "You do have a more important life to lead than that of being a ranger and a firefighter."

"Can you say that again, but louder?" Hunter asked with a small smile. "We keep telling Carter he needs to get a life, but so far it hasn't been working out."

The side of Captain Mitchell's mouth turned up at the corner. "There's more to life than our professions," he agreed. "But that still doesn't explain what you're doing here…" his eyes shifted over Hunter and Andrews. "Or why you seem to be torturing them."

"You never take a day off training, sir," Carter agreed. "I just asked if they'd like to come with me."

"More like, dragged us," Andrews muttered.

"I didn't put a gun to your head."

"You may as well have. You're a power ranger, dude, we don't know whether or not you have some sort of a pocket dimension that can hold all your little gadgets and gizmos." Captain Mitchell laughed at the joke, making Carter smile a little.

"Well, if you insist on getting some training done, don't let me stop you." Captain Mitchell took a few steps back. He shed himself of his track jacket and held out his hand. "As a matte of fact, let me help you."

Carter looked at Captain Mitchell's extended hand and back up to his boss's eyes. He saw nothing but challenge in his boss's eyes. Friendly change. A change from the harsh, scrutinizing stare as he watched the rangers through all of their training. "You want to train with me?"

"I do."

Carter glanced at his friends, who both lifted their hands and took three large steps back to safety. _Thanks a lot, guys,_ Carter thought, rolling his eyes to them. Carter brought up a hand to scratch his bare chest, mulling it over. Then, he nodded and moved forward to shake Captain Mitchell's hand.

Captain Mitchell squeezed Carter's hand, then suddenly squeezed Carter's fingers together. The sudden shock of pain stunned Carter before he found himself flipped off his feet and onto his back in the grass. Captain Mitchell dropped Carter's hand and took a step back, watching as Carter lay stunned on the ground, staring up at the sky.

"First rule of sparring; always expect the unexpected," Captain Mitchell explained. "I thought I taught you better than that."

Carter rolled onto his stomach and pulled himself back to his feet. He watched his boss for a moment, nodding to himself. He should've known Captain Mitchell was going to make an example out of the first move. He really should've seen it coming. Shouldn't have expected things to be easy at first. Just because he was the man who called the shots…

"Come one, Carter," Captain Mitchell said. "Don't go easy on me."

Carter tilted his head. Felt challenge coming to the muscles in his body. He certainly wouldn't' go easy on him. Carter brought back his fist and plunged it forward, striking towards Captain Mitchell's face. Once. Twice. Three times. Each time, Captain Mitchell backed his head out of the path of the punch.

Just so much that Carter extended his arms the whole way. Threw himself forward. Put everything into the punch, but pulled back. Enough so that Captain Mitchell could see he meant business, could see he was going to give him a fair fight, but without potentially injuring his boss.

Captain Mitchell watched Carter's movements carefully. Nodded as he brought up his hands to block the punch that Carter tried to twist aside to use the flat of his arm to throw Captain Mitchell off-balance. When that didn't work, Carter took a step back and pressed his back foot to the ground. In the next second, he used the power off his back leg and pushed forward, launching himself into the air in a hard twist.

A scissor kick that, along with a kiai, Carter launched himself toward Captain Mitchell. Captain Mitchell turned his body aside, rolling across the ground so that Carter didn't come close to hitting him. When Carter landed on the ground, Captain Mitchell shot out his foot and caught Carter in the ankle, sending him to the ground.

Carter gasped, all the air blowing out of him. He blew his hair from his face and looked back up at Captain Mitchell, who smiled back at him, mustache twitching. "How is it that I can take a roundtrip flight and still be able to defeat you?"

Andrews and Hunter, who sat nearby, arms resting around their knees, laughed to themselves. Carter pushed himself to his knees, dusting his palms off on his shorts. "I'm just going easy on you, Captain."

"Don't go easy on me."

"Okay." Carter flipped himself to his feet in an impressive show of strength, going from his knees, flipping his feet from behind him and over his head, and back to his feet. Did a high spinning kick towards Captain Mitchell, who almost didn't allow himself to get out the way in time.

Carter sent a flurry of kicks and punches toward Captain Mitchell, who continued to block Carter as he did so, before he turned the tables and started to attack Carter. At first, Carter was stunned when he saw the power Captain Mitchell shot back toward him.

For someone who usually stood aside and watched the rangers work, he hid a lot more power than Carter thought he would've had. As it was, he broke a sweat while blocking the attacks Captain Mitchell sent his way, working his body to the limit. Captain Mitchell didn't know a lot of martial arts, neither did Carter, but the explosive force couldn't be duplicated.

Captain Mitchell had some sort of training in something, he wasn't just someone who barked out orders. Finally, Carter found his opening. He aimed towards Captain Mitchell's head then quickly turned his back to his boss, elbowing Captain Mitchell in his chest.

The force knocked Captain Mitchell on to his back, tumbling feet over head before he came to a stop on his back, arms stretched above him. Carter grinned. Using the back of his arm, he wiped sweat off his forehead, watching as Captain Mitchell worked to catch his breath.

"So, how're you doing, Captain?" He asked, enjoying the teasing lilt to his voice.

"Just fine," Captain Mitchell replied. He slowly sat up, running his hands over his balding hair.

"I can slow down a little for you, if you want."

Captain Mitchell shook his head. His voice mimicked Carter's, making the smile immediately wiped off the red ranger's face. "No, you're already going too slow for me."

"Well, you're right about one thing, sir," Hunter called over to the two. "You still got it. I don't think I've ever seen Carter get beat like that before."

"Look at him," Andrews agreed. "His face is turning red!"

"You can't underestimate your opponents," Hunter continued to tease, making Carter glare at his friends. "And you can't underestimate what you may get yourself into. You're the one who keeps telling all the new candidates that."

"Don't remind me," Carter murmured.

"And I assure you that Carter is just making this look easy," Captain Mitchell agreed. "And…whatever I had, I think I left it right at the start."

Carter held his hand out to his boss, offering him a way back to his feet. "Maybe I should call Dana with her ambulance." Mentioning Dana's name made Carter suddenly stiffen. A pang of…resentment? Guilt? It struck him suddenly. Wishing he was at the beach along with the rest of his team. The rest of his…friends?

He wasn't quite sure he felt they were friends yet. They threw themselves into the line of fire just as he did with the rest of the fire fighters. But…he'd gone through years of grueling challenges of the fire academy and being a candidate, rather than being thrust straight into the fire.

But going to the beach…

Laughing along with his friends…

He certainly wasn't thinking of Dana in her bathing suit earlier. There were more important things to think about. Carter snapped to attention when he heard Captain Mitchell clear this throat and moved closer to the older man to held him up off the ground. He caught Captain Mitchell's eyes and, horrifically, felt himself start to blush, it looked as if Captain Mitchell could read his mind.

Thankfully, Captain Mitchell merely said, "Laugh it up, rookie," as he was hauled to his feet. "When I was your age, I would've left you in the dust." Carter lifted a skeptical eyebrow. "Believe it or not, I used to train like you. But even I took a day off every now and then." He looked at Carter closely. "Listen, Carter. I've never seen anyone so driven. Why is that?"

"Every drop of sweat is…is to make myself the best," Carter said. He pressed his lips together, seeing Hunter and Andrews exchange a glance out the corner of his eye. They knew the real reason why, but Carter didn't want to go into it. The more people that knew of his story, the more they said it was a 'miracle', that it was 'a great goal to move toward'. That it was amazing.

That wasn't what Carter wanted. He didn't want the glory. Didn't want the notoriety to go along with it. He simply wanted to be as good as _he_ was. That was it.

Captain Mitchell took in a deep breath through his nose, chest swelling. He placed his hands on his hips and said, "Well, you need to remember, Carter…even heroes are only human." The last of his words were drowned out by a sudden, deafening, roaring sound.

At the same time, Carter and Captain Mitchell craned their necks toward the sky. Carter brought up his hand and shielded his face from the sun and watched as a glowing yellow light streaked from a suddenly formed gray cloud. It crashed to the ground, imploding on impact.

Hunter followed the streak of smoke with his eyes up to the sky. He turned back to his companions. "What was that?"

"Whatever it was landed near the power plant," Andrews said.

"We need to check it out," Carter said. He looked to Captain Mitchell, Andrews, and Hunter, who all nodded before taking off at a run.

* * *

 **A/N:** I love Carter. He's just so very disciplined but there's a lot to unpack with him. And, yes, you'll see more of what happened with Captain Mitchell and Billy, I didn't forget that. Chapters will get longer, I'm excited to be back with this one.

Thanks to **Adela, ChibiDawn23, and Guest** for reviewing.


	22. Something Wicked (3)

**.:21:.**

 _Something Wicked_

* * *

Bailey carefully turned over the starfish in her hand, studying the way its legs twitched and wiggled against her fingertips. She turned it around, gently closing her fingers around its body, holding it tightly, protecting it, so that she didn't accidentally hurt it.

Funny how she managed to protect a simple creature of the Earth more than she could protect her own family. She idolized her father for most of her life, only to find out that he was someone who didn't deserve even a tiny bit of her respect. Someone who, in as many ways, had set her and her sister off on the downward path that had pushed Avalon into the Vipers and simultaneously made it so that they found who would eventually, actually become their family.

At least now she could figure out a way to make her own morpher and utilize the morphing grid in ways she could never figure out when she was young. Sure, she spent a lot of time with Billy, Alpha, and Zordon in the Command Center. But that was just kid's stuff. She was more of Billy's assistant when it came to the work they did. Even when Fred figured out her secret—after she was forced to tell him—and started to work in the Command Center along with them, she started to move into a role that had her doing her own projects alongside Billy.

The same being said when she gave up her Zeo powers to do…what? Sit around be more of a kid. To have some friends. To be normal. She should've known, sooner or later, that 'normal' life would've been boring.

But not so much so that she couldn't see the beauty of nature when she had the time to herself.

"You know, there's plenty more to see than just these tide pools," Chad remarked, kneeling next to her. He ran a hand through his hair. Bailey simply smiled back at him, gently dropping the starfish back into the water. "I don't think I've seen you think happy since you got here."

"I reckon you're right," Bailey replied. She sat back on her heels, flicking water off her fingertips. "It just took some used to. Being here, I mean."

"You mean, being around a new team of rangers," Chad broke in.

Bailey frowned, looking away from him. It wasn't quite untrue. It took a while for her to get used to the new team. For her to get used to her new role on the team. She should've known she wasn't the sort of person that could give up the extraordinary powers she was given to help save people.

And it was enough that she was working to keep it a secret she was trying to build her own morpher.

Thankfully, she handled it better than her sister did. She hadn't seen someone self-destruct more often than Avalon did. She almost had a knack for it. It was a way they were different, and yet they were very similar. Self-destructing in their own ways. Avalon let go of everything form the past and continued to charge forward as much as possible while Bailey continued to find ways to stick in the past.

"You know, it's not easy for us, either," Chad pointed out. He stretched out in the swath of sand next to the tide pool, prompting Bailey to the same. "Being a ranger, I mean. It's new and weird to get used to. Not to mention, people _knowing_ that we're rangers. Getting stopped on the street all the time."

"Joel doesn't seem to have an issue with it," Bailey pointed out.

Chad gave her a look. "Joel doesn't have a solid grasp on reality as it is," he joked. "Why do you think he's always going around pointing finger guns at people and signing autographs?" At that, he nodded with his chin down the beach where Joel stood with a group of giggling girls and smaller boys waving pictures at him for him to sign.

All the while he had a massive smile on his face.

"Yeah, I reckon I noticed that," Bailey agreed.

"But, things are difficult. We were ripped away from our lives, from everything we knew that was normal, to try and save the city for things we didn't even know existed. Come to find out that we were recruited by a government man and his two daughters who know more than the rest of us but won't let us in on the secret."

Bailey shrugged. "It's not a secret. It's…"

"—Something you went through," Chad agreed. His voice turned soft as he stretched across the stand. He took in a deep breath then let it out. Silence stretched between the two for a long moment. Bailey watched Chad for as long as the silence stretched out, wrapping her arms around her legs, resting her chin atop it. "But you did it when you were so young."

"Yeah," Bailey agreed. "I went through a lot of things when I was young." She swallowed hard. Unsure of what to say next. There were many things she'd seen that she wished she hadn't. A lot of it Avalon tried to protect her form but couldn't. But it hadn't been the Vipers that made her fear so many things she'd seen when she was young.

It was being a ranger that had done it. It was seeing Ivan Ooze tower over her, threatening to squish her because she 'took his color' all the while she didn't have her powers at the time. It was watching as their zords were destroyed with little to no effort from Ivan, Scorpina, and Goldar. It was going against the Horoscope monsters who continued to follow and trail behind them at different parts of their lives, becoming stronger and stronger as they defeated one monster and moved onto another. It was the Seven Deadly Sins monsters following after them that made it worse.

It was watching Evie Caldwell die in front of them that proved just how…how easy it was for them to forget that they were still human. But, most of all, it was seeing what happened to Billy's mother that had made the realities of being a ranger worse for her. Because of the fallout. Because of the secrets they had to keep. Mrs. Cranston died because they had to keep their being rangers a secret. There were too many people that would become caught in the crossfire, that made sense, but Mrs. Cranston didn't make sense.

She was too far from the rangers to be taken.

And now, now the ironic part…they were facing off against the evil entity that had been her undoing. Long before they knew of his presence.

Diabolicco.

It scared her, more than the idea of making her own morpher, how Diabolicco was able to stay in their lives for so long. And was still part of their lives. How horrifying to realize. Just as horrifying it would be if Ivan Ooze were to come back to life and take someone down they thought was already defeated.

"Maybe too young," Chad agreed. Bailey frowned and looked at him again. Unstretched her legs.

"No," she said slowly. "I don't…" and trailed off again. It wasn't that she didn't think he was right. She was a bit too young. But it wasn't anything she'd give up. She wouldn't give up any of it. _But you gave up being a ranger,_ she reminded herself. _Because you didn't know what you wanted._

"There's nothing wrong with being young," Chad broke into her thoughts once more. "Being young makes it so that you can see the world in a different way than others get to. In a more…whimsical way." He smiled to himself. "It was like when I was first training with my dolphins. They're very much like little children in terms of the attention they want, the times they like to play."

"Great, you're comparing me to a dolphin," Bailey jokingly complained. She shoved him hard on the arm. "Next you're going to say Av's some sort of a sea witch."

"She could be for all I know."

"Don't let her hear you say that."

Chad laughed.

"So you're saying I smell?" Bailey asked.

Chad shook his head. "No. I'm saying you're intelligent. And you're someone who I'm sure many people would overlook at first. But you're strong. And you've been through a lot. And I can tell, even from watching you with the Captain, that there's an intelligence and power about you that others don't know to be aware of yet. And here's the thing,"—he lifted a finger—"You look more like a legend when you accomplish a lot at a young age. And I can say, I have a feeling you're going to be a very accomplished young woman, powers or no powers."

Ducking her head, Bailey smiled gratefully. An embarrassed flush came to her cheeks. She ran a hand through her hair, pushing aside all doubts and fears and worries that swirled around her. It was supposed to be a good day. A day off. A day where they enjoyed the sunshine and each other's company.

And she certainly did enjoy Chad's company. And the rest of the rangers. Unlike Av, she welcomed new team members with open arms when they came around. It was as exciting as it was sad, to see people leave and new rangers come in.

And on days like that day, it was a way to signify the new team she was a part of. And would officially be a part of if she got that new morpher working. Bailey glanced over her shoulder, watching the ranger team.

Then, she couldn't help it. Her eyebrows came together.

Something about Ryan seemed familiar to her, though she knew she'd never met him before. Nevertheless…something couldn't quit nagging at her. Nothing of his face was familiar to her. Nothing of the way he carried himself. Nothing of the way he spoke to Kelsey.

He was nice. And worked well to make himself seem like a good guy to the rangers. Outwardly, there was absolutely nothing wrong with him. Still, something about him made her skin crawl and she wasn't quite sure what it was. Bailey twisted to catch Avalon's eyes, knowing her sister was much quicker to suss out any danger that may be coming their way. It was how she managed to keep them safe, no matter how dangerous things with the Vipers were getting.

This time around, Avalon didn't seem to notice. She sat along with Dana, the two laughing as Kelsey worked to bury Ryan in the sand, loudly cursing through her laughter the more he worked to throw the sand off him and back onto her.

"What?" Chad's voice brought her back to attention.

Bailey hummed. She started to say something then stopped, voice drowned out by something she should've bene used to. An explosion.

The sound of an explosion rocked the beach, making all on the beach immediately turn around to determine the source of the noise. Bailey instantly froze, feeling all the muscles in her body tense up, allowing the resounding quaking from the explosion to rock through her body.

Not that she didn't expect it. There hadn't been many days in Mariner Bay—or in ranger life in general—where there was a day where nothing happened. The rangers had been going on patrol more and more often than she and her original team had. Then again, their team operated differently.

And maybe that was the point, that everything worked differently.

Nevertheless, it wasn't the explosion that made her freeze.

That made her blood run cold.

That made her wonder what the future had in store for them.

It was Ryan; because-she wasn't quite sure—she saw a brief smile flash across his face the moment chaos erupted after the explosion hit.

* * *

 **A/N:** As per usual, thank you all for being so patient with me as you wait for updates. While Power Rangers isn't as much of my life as it used to be, it's not something I'm giving up. My updates may be fewer and further between but everything I write will be completed as I hate to leave stories unfinished (unless it truly is something I want to re-write or can't seem to find more inspiration/motivation for).

I missed my girls, glad to write them again.

Thanks to **Adela, ChibiDawn23, and Guest** for reviewing.


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